On September 5, 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom signed the Fast Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act or FAST Recovery Act (AB-257). In a breathtaking move, the state government, which is dominated at all levels by...more
As we previously reported here, in Chamber of Commerce of the U.S.A. v. Bonta, 13 F.4th 766 (9th Cir. 2021), a three member panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals resurrected California Labor Code Section 432.6, which...more
The Los Angeles County Superior Court has confirmed an arbitrator’s October 2021 award of $31 million to be paid by actor Kevin Spacey to producers of the Netflix show House of Cards for Spacey’s alleged breach of contract. ...more
On July 7, 2022, Mayor Eric Garcetti signed the “Healthcare Workers Minimum Wage Ordinance” (“Ordinance”) which, effective August 13, 2022, increases the minimum wage to $25 per hour for healthcare workers employed at...more
7/18/2022
/ California ,
City of Los Angeles ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Labor Reform ,
Local Ordinance ,
Minimum Wage ,
Wage and Hour
Summary Judgment Was Properly Granted To Employer In Whistleblower Case -
Vatalaro v. County of Sacramento, 2022 WL 1775708 (Cal. Ct. App. 2022)
Cynthia J. Vatalaro sued the county for a violation of Cal. Lab. Code §...more
On June 15, 2022, in Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana, Case No. 20-1573,_ U.S. _ (2022), by an 8-1 majority, the U.S. States Supreme Court held that the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) preempts the California Supreme...more
6/24/2022
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
California ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Iskanian v CLS Transportation ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Preemption ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
SCOTUS ,
State Labor Laws ,
Viking River Cruises ,
Viking River Cruises Inc v Moriana
A federal appeals court recently affirmed a summary judgment entered in favor of WinCo Foods in a class action alleging that WinCo should have reimbursed successful job applicants for the time and travel expenses they...more
6/17/2022
/ Appeals ,
California ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Conditional Job Offers ,
Drug Testing ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Pre-Employment Health Screenings ,
Reimbursements ,
State Labor Laws ,
Travel Expenses ,
Wage and Hour
As we have previously reported, jury verdicts in employment cases have continued to skyrocket in recent months, and there is no sign they are leveling off. Late last week, a Los Angeles Superior Court jury awarded a total of...more
6/6/2022
/ Compensatory Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Harassment ,
Hostile Environment ,
Internal Reporting ,
Jury Trial ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Punitive Damages ,
Retaliation ,
Sexual Harassment
In Michelle Roman v. Hertz Local Edition Corp., a United States District Court Judge for the Southern District of California granted summary judgment in favor of Hertz, and against former employee Michelle Roman, whose...more
5/26/2022
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
California ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
FEHA ,
Hertz ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Infectious Diseases ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
In a significant change of course among major employers, Netflix recently made several changes to its employee culture memo, which is now called “Netflix Culture – Seeking Excellence.”Among other things, Netflix inserted a...more
Former UCLA Physician Can Proceed With Whistleblower Claims -
Scheer v. The Regents of the Univ. of Cal., 76 Cal. App. 5th 904 (2022) -
Arnold Scheer, M.D., M.P.H., sued the Regents of the University of California and...more
5/23/2022
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
CAFA ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Forced Labor ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Code ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
A federal court judge pared down last year’s jaw-dropping $137 million damages award against Tesla in a racial bias lawsuit. On April 13, 2022, the judge granted Tesla’s motion for a reduction in the amount of damages in part...more
On March 17, Rover—a digital application connecting pet owners with daily pet-care providers—argued to the Ninth Circuit that it should uphold a California federal judge’s finding that a dog-sitter was properly classified as...more
The California Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee recently passed Senate Bill 1044, moving the legislation one step closer to a vote by the full state senate. SB 1044 would permit employees, without...more
It’s only been two weeks since President Biden signed the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021 (the “Ending Forced Arbitration Act”) into law, and there is already a new major...more
California Relaxes Standard For Proving Whistleblower Claims -
Lawson v. PPG Architectural Finishes, Inc., 12 Cal. 5th 703 (2022) -
Plaintiff Wallen Lawson, who was discharged by his employer PPG Architectural Finishes...more
3/18/2022
/ ADEA ,
California ,
Class Action ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Race Discrimination ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblowers
Many employers undertake routine background checks as part of their hiring process. To be effective, of course, the process has to be completed in a timely manner....more
3/16/2022
/ Background Checks ,
California ,
Conditional Job Offers ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Labor Laws
Yesterday, the Senate passed H. 4445, the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (the “Act”), by a voice vote. The bill had previously passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 335-97....more
2/11/2022
/ #MeToo ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Pending Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
On February 7, 2022, in a 335-97 vote, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bipartisan bill (“Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021”), which would prohibit “mandatory arbitration”...more
2/10/2022
/ #MeToo ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Collective Actions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Labor Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
The California Supreme Court has resolved an inconsistency that has divided the courts as to the proper evidentiary standard necessary to prove a whistleblower retaliation claim....more
2/10/2022
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Burden of Proof ,
CA Supreme Court ,
California ,
Evidence ,
Labor Code ,
Labor Reform ,
Retaliation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
On February 7, 2022, there were two big COVID-19-related news developments in the Golden State: First, Gov. Newsom announced that California’s mask mandates would expire on February 15th. Second, the legislature voted to...more
2/9/2022
/ California ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Labor Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Pending Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Retroactive Application ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Manicurist Can Proceed With Hostile Work Environment Claim -
Fried v. Wynn Las Vegas, 18 F.4th 643 (9th Cir. 2021) -
Vincent Fried, a manicurist at a salon in the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas, was sexually propositioned by a...more
1/20/2022
/ Disability Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Hostile Environment ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Nonprofits ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
State Labor Laws ,
Volunteers ,
Wage Statements ,
Wrongful Termination
Last month, California’s Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board (“OSHSB”) readopted and revised the Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Prevention Emergency Temporary Standards (“ETS”). By and large, OSHSB’s revised ETS retain most of...more
1/12/2022
/ Cal-OSHA ,
California ,
CDPH ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
New Guidance ,
New Regulations ,
Occupational Exposure ,
Quarantine ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Things aren’t looking so good for the long-term health of the Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”).
On top of the U.S. Supreme Court’s granting review of a case challenging PAGA’s anti-arbitration rule and a...more
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, which has responsibility for the County’s more than 10 million residents, kicked off the new year with a brand new Health Officer Order on January 5, 2022. Among other...more
1/10/2022
/ California ,
City of Los Angeles ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Public Health ,
Workplace Safety