On February 14, 2024, California State Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas introduced Senate Bill 1137 (“SB 1137”), a bill that would make California the first state to specifically recognize the concept of “intersectionality.”...more
Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill earlier this month that would have made California the first state to ban caste-based discrimination. Senate Bill No. 403 would have expanded the definition of “ancestry” under the California...more
On October 7, 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed proposed bill SB 403, which, as previously discussed, sought to ban discrimination based on caste under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), Unruh Civil Rights Act, and...more
California is one step closer to becoming the first state to enact legislation banning caste-based discrimination. Senate Bill (SB) No. 403 adds caste to the list of characteristics protected by the California Fair Employment...more
California is poised to enact the first statewide ban on caste discrimination in the United States. Senate Bill 403 integrates “caste” into the definition of “ancestry” as a characteristic protected from discrimination by...more
On July 5, 2023, the California Senate voted 34-1 in favor of clarifying existing law by defining “ancestry” to include “caste” as protected within the state’s anti-discrimination statutes....more
Magadia v. Wal-Mart Associates, Inc., No. 19-16184, 2021 WL 2176584 (9th Cir., May 28, 2021) - Summary: An employee lacks Article III standing to bring a PAGA claim in federal court for Labor Code violations that the...more
Aerotek, Inc. v. The Johnson Group Staffing Co., 2020 WL 5525180 (Cal. Ct. App. 2020) - The law firm Porter Scott, P.C., defended its client The Johnson Group Staffing (TJG) through two rounds of litigation against claims...more
There have been reports of violence and harassment, particularly in the Asian-American community, during the COVID-19 pandemic. The California Fair Employment and Housing Act and Unruh Civil Rights Act prohibit employers from...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Fair Employment and Housing Council issues regulations to implement California’s employment and housing anti-discrimination laws, including the FEHA, the CFRA, and the Unruh and Ralph Civil Rights Acts....more
Now is the time of year for California employers to review the numerous employment laws that will be going into effect in 2017 to ensure that their policies and practices are in compliance and properly address new...more
Readers will recall that we recently corralled the law on “Assistive Animals” in the workplace, here. Now, in part two of our mini-series, we pony up an explanation of the rules governing the use of service animals by...more