Much has been made about the recent, hurried legislation to amend the Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) in order to take the Fair Pay and Employer Accountability Act (“FPEAA”) off the California ballot this November....more
Employers with operations both large and small in California are all too familiar with California’s Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”), the controversial 2004 statute that permits a single employee to stand in the shoes...more
8/2/2023
/ California ,
Class Action ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Labor Code ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Labor Reform ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Labor Laws
The California Supreme Court has issued its highly anticipated decision in Adolph v. Uber Technologies, Inc., concluding that plaintiffs who must arbitrate their “individual” PAGA claims are not deprived of standing to pursue...more
We seem to say this every year — December always seems to go by far too fast. And with holidays and vacations, not to mention many employees still working remotely, it’s not unusual for matters to be put off until the new...more
Silence can be telling.
That is especially so in the legal industry.
In the context of a hearing or oral argument, if judges or justices don’t ask an attorney a question, it can be incredibly encouraging – or...more
December is not the shortest month of the year, but it always seems to go by the fastest. ...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
November 3, 2020 has been circled on the calendars of app-based ride share and food delivery companies doing business in California for many months now. After a new ruling by the California Court of Appeal, those companies...more
We have written frequently here about AB5, California’s controversial law that creates an “ABC” test that must be satisfied in order for a worker to be treated as an independent contractor. ...more
9/8/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Artists ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Music Industry ,
New Legislation ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Writers
As we wrote here just several days ago, Californians were facing the seemingly unimaginable this week– the possibility of living without ride share services for the foreseeable future....more
8/21/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Ballot Measures ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
Ridesharing ,
State Attorneys General ,
State Labor Laws ,
TRO ,
Wage and Hour
To some, it may feel like it was a lifetime ago when ride share companies did not even exist. In those seemingly long-ago days, people relied upon friends to drive them to or from the airport, or assigned designated drivers...more
8/19/2020
/ Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Lyft ,
Misclassification ,
Ridesharing ,
State Labor Laws ,
TRO ,
Uber ,
Wage and Hour
We have written here frequently about California’s controversial AB 5 law, which permits companies to treat workers as independent contractors only if they satisfy a stringent “ABC” test....more
8/12/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Ballot Measures ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
Ridesharing ,
State Attorneys General ,
State Labor Laws ,
TRO ,
Wage and Hour
For those of you who may have been wondering whether the California Attorney General’s office was still open during the statewide stay-at-home order triggered by the coronavirus, the answer is yes – as evidenced by a...more
5/8/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Dynamex ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Lyft ,
Misclassification ,
State Labor Laws ,
Uber ,
Wage and Hour
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
As we wrote here, United States District Court Judge Kimberly J. Mueller of the Eastern District of California wrote a brief “minute order” explaining that she was issuing a preliminary injunction to halt enforcement of...more
2/11/2020
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Contract Terms ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Labor Regulations ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Motion To Enjoin ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws
As we have written here, the day before California’s controversial AB 5 was set to go into effect, U.S. District Court Judge Roger Benitez issued a temporary restraining order to block enforcement of the law as to...more
2/3/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Dynamex ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (FAAAA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Motor Carriers ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
TRO ,
Trucking Industry ,
Trucking Regulations ,
Wage and Hour
As we recently wrote here, on December 29, 2019, just days before California’s new arbitration statute known as AB 51 was to go into effect, a federal judge in the United States District Court of the Eastern District of...more
1/16/2020
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Labor Regulations ,
Motion To Enjoin ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Restraining Orders ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
TRO
As we recently wrote here, just hours before California’s controversial AB 5 went into effect, a federal court in San Diego issued a temporary restraining order (“TRO”) to enjoin enforcement of the independent contractor...more
1/16/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Commerce Clause ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Dynamex ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (FAAAA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Motor Carriers ,
New Legislation ,
Owner-Operators ,
Preemption ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
TRO ,
Trucking Industry ,
Trucking Regulations ,
Wage and Hour
Following the challenges to AB 5, California’s controversial new independent contractor law, can be a difficult endeavor. Every day seems to bring a new development....more
1/13/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Dynamex ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (FAAAA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Motor Carriers ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
Retroactive Application ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
TRO ,
Trucking Industry ,
Trucking Regulations ,
Wage and Hour
On January 1, 2020, California’s new independent contractor statute, known as AB 5, went into effect. The law codifies the use of an “ABC” test to determine if an individual may be classified as an independent contractor....more
1/3/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Commerce Clause ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Employee Definition ,
Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (FAAAA) ,
Independent Contractors ,
Interstate Commerce ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Motor Carriers ,
Owner-Operators ,
Preemption ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Transportation Industry ,
TRO ,
Trucking Industry ,
Unduly Burdensome
AB 5, California’s hastily passed and controversial independent contractor statute, which codifies the use of an “ABC test,” is set to go into effect on January 1, 2020. Already, the California Trucking Association has filed...more
1/2/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Due Process ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Protection ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Motion To Enjoin ,
On-Demand Services ,
Retroactive Application ,
Ridesharing ,
Sharing Economy ,
State and Local Government ,
State Constitutions ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
We recently wrote about a new California law set to go into effect on January 1, 2020 that would outlaw mandatory arbitration agreements with employees....more
12/31/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Contract Terms ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Labor Disputes ,
Labor Regulations ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Restraining Orders ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
TRO
As we wrote here in September 27, the new “white collar” salary thresholds under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) are set to go into effect on January 1, 2020. That deadline is sneaking up fast....more
11/22/2019
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Final Rules ,
Labor Regulations ,
Minimum Salary ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Over-Time ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Threshold Requirements ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
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
There may soon be a fair number of big-rig trucks for sale in California, as well as computers, desks, and other material investments of persons who determine that they may no longer offer their services as independent...more
9/25/2019
/ ABC Test ,
Dynamex ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gig Economy ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
New Legislation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Orders