This week, we’re examining California Governor Gavin Newsom’s new deal that was brokered to amend the Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (PAGA):
Last week, Governor Newsom announced that California’s business and labor...more
California plaintiffs’ lawyers typically bring every type of wage-hour claim they can. Increasingly, however, they have focused on one type of claim – wage statement violations....more
The U.S. Supreme Court’s June 15, 2022 decision in Viking River Cruises v. Moriana could have a tremendous impact upon pending and future litigation, as well as employment practices in the state....more
Before ringing in the New Year, employers should carefully evaluate whether they need to adjust their current practices to ensure that they remain compliant with state and local laws, including those relating to minimum wage...more
More than three years after its landmark decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, the United States Supreme Court has granted certiorari in Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana to determine whether Epic Systems extends to...more
It is no secret that the Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) has been a cash cow for plaintiffs’ counsel in California....more
Many people are employed at airports. Of those, many individuals work within the terminals for private companies. Federal law requires that those employees who work in the terminals must go through security checks – just...more
California law generally requires employers to pay non-exempt employees a premium of one hour of pay for non-compliant meal and rest periods. Employers have typically paid such premiums by using the employees’ standard hourly...more
We have previously discussed on this page how rounding practices can be problematic. Now, in Donohue v. AMN Services, LLC, the California Supreme Court has provided yet another reason for employers in California to review...more
A sometimes-overlooked requirement for classifying an employee as exempt from overtime is that, with limited exceptions, the employee must be paid on a “salary basis.” Indeed, when employers fail to pay their exempt employees...more
On January 29, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the immediate termination of its Payroll Audit Independent Determination Program (PAID). Launched in March 2018 by the Wage and Hour Division (WHD), PAID was...more
It’s #WorkforceWednesday. This week, we focus on key state-level election results impacting employment law and what a new administration will mean for your business.
Proposition 22 Passes in CA, Further Narrowing AB5 (video...more
California generally requires that, when employees accrue vacation time during their employment, any accrued but unused vacation time must be paid out at the end of employment. ...more
It is no secret that independent contractor misclassification claims are being filed against employers with a great deal of frequency, often as class actions and often in California. Many of those lawsuits have been filed...more
It is not unusual for businesses at risk of employee theft to implement security screenings for employees as they exit the employer’s facilities. Such screenings are especially common in industries where small, costly items...more
It seems as though there is a minefield that employers must navigate to ensure that they fulfill their wage and hour obligations to their employees. Employers must somehow comply with overlapping and seemingly contradictory...more
This Employment Law This Week® Monthly Rundown discusses the most important developments for employers heading into November 2019. The episode includes:
1. New California Law Arguably Preempted by FAA
California has passed...more
11/6/2019
/ ABC Test ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Contractors ,
Drug Testing ,
Drug-Free Workplace Act ,
Dynamex ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
FEHA ,
Marijuana ,
Recreational Use
In bringing meal and rest period claims on behalf of their clients, the plaintiffs’ bar has long argued that merely because there was an alleged meal or rest period violation, there were also “derivative” statutory violations...more
As employers with operations in California had feared, Governor Gavin Newsom has signed AB 51, which effectively outlaws mandatory arbitration agreements with employees – a new version of a bill that prior Governor Jerry...more
10/14/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Contract Terms ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Labor Regulations ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws
As employers with operations in California had feared, Governor Gavin Newsom has signed AB 51, which effectively outlaws mandatory arbitration agreements with employees—a new version of a bill that prior Governor Jerry Brown...more
10/14/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Governor Newsom ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
Self-Regulatory Organizations
On September 24, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued its highly anticipated final rule regarding amendments to the overtime exemption criteria for the administrative, executive, and professional (“EAP”)...more
10/1/2019
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
EAP ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Final Rules ,
Minimum Salary ,
New Rules ,
Over-Time ,
State and Local Government ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
Arguably, the very first workplace regulation, dating back thousands of years, was one involving wage and hour issues—the mandatory day of rest. While much has changed over the great many years since then, the centrality of...more
10/2/2018
/ Arbitration Agreements ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Epic Systems Corp v Lewis ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Independent Contractors ,
Navarro v Encino Motorcars ,
Opinion Letter ,
Tipped Employees ,
Unpaid Overtime ,
Wage and Hour
On April 30, 2018, the California Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court, clarifying the standard for determining whether workers in California should be classified as...more
5/2/2018
/ ABC Test ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
A year ago, employers across the country prepared for the implementation of a new overtime rule that would dramatically increase the salary threshold for white-collar exemptions, on the understanding that the new rule would...more
9/29/2017
/ Arbitration ,
Barack Obama ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Definition ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint Employers ,
Misclassification ,
Murphy Oil v NLRB ,
Popular ,
Tip Credit ,
Tip-Pooling ,
Trump Administration ,
Unpaid Overtime ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
It is no secret that the wage and hour requirements found in the myriad of federal, state, and local laws and regulations present unique challenges to employers across the country. Those challenges are further complicated by...more