It’s been a nice summer recess as the California Legislature has been on break, with Members returning to their home districts. But that respite is about to end as the Legislature reconvenes on August 6. There will be a...more
8/2/2018
/ #MeToo ,
Corporate Counsel ,
DFEH ,
EEO-1 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
FEHA ,
Governor Brown ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
NLRA ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
OSHA ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws ,
Volks Rule ,
Wage and Hour
As many of you will recall from last year, Governor Brown signed legislation to prevent employers from asking about or relying on salary history information when making hiring decisions. That legislation, Assembly Bill 168...more
Immigration has, and continues to be, a major flashpoint between California and the Trump administration. In 2017, the California legislature passed significant legislation (AB 450) impacting how California employers deal...more
7/9/2018
/ Consent ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Employment Records ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
Immigration Enforcement ,
Intergovernmental Agreements ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Preemption ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trump Administration ,
Undocumented Immigrants ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
Workplace Investigations
Issues related to immigration status, national security policy, and country of origin continue to be a hot topic of animated discussion at the federal level. In the midst of this national debate, California has amended its...more
6/25/2018
/ Amended Regulation ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
English-Only Rules ,
FEHC ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Human Trafficking ,
Job Applicants ,
National Origin ,
National Origin Discrimination ,
Recruitment Policies ,
Undocumented Immigrants ,
Unfair Immigration-Related Practices
As we discussed in our last blog post, California employers received some rare good news in recent days. Bills to expand California’s paid sick leave requirement and to require employers to accommodate medical marijuana use...more
6/1/2018
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Arbitration ,
Board of Directors ,
Breastfeeding ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Data Breach ,
Discrimination ,
DLSE ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Governor Brown ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hotels ,
Immigration Records ,
Liquidated Damages ,
Local Ordinance ,
Pay Data ,
Pending Legislation ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Trucking Industry ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour
As we previously discussed in this blog, last year Governor Jerry Brown signed legislation to prevent employers from asking about salary history information. That legislation, Assembly Bill 168 (Eggman), went into effect on...more
4/27/2018
/ Ban the Box ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Pay ,
Equal Pay Act ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Governor Brown ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Wage and Hour
One of the more popular public policy issues of late has been an employer’s obligation to accommodate employees who are lactating or expressing breast milk. The federal government, states, and local jurisdictions have been...more
4/9/2018
/ Breastfeeding ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Labor Commissioners ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Pregnancy Discrimination ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Undue Hardship
As most employers in California know, meal and rest period litigation has been a hot area for more than a decade, troubling employers across all industries. This is largely because state law provides extremely rigid...more
As we reported in January, after nearly six years of discussion and debate, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board (Board) approved a standard on “Hotel Housekeeping Musculoskeletal Injury Prevention.” The final regulation was recently...more
3/15/2018
/ Cal-OSHA ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hotels ,
New Regulations ,
Office of Administrative Law ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Unions ,
Workplace Injury ,
Workplace Investigations ,
Workplace Safety
The ever-escalating dispute between the Trump Administration and the State of California over immigration policy is starting to resemble a Shakespearean drama.
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, speaking at an appearance...more
3/9/2018
/ Attorney General ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Governor Brown ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
Immigration Enforcement ,
Injunctions ,
Labor Commissioners ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Preemption ,
Sanctuary Cities ,
Search Warrant ,
Supremacy Clause ,
Trump Administration ,
Undocumented Immigrants
Recently, the California Fair Employment and Housing Council (FEHC) proposed new draft regulations to implement provisions of two key employment statutes enacted last year.
Last year, Governor Brown signed Assembly Bill...more
3/5/2018
/ Ban the Box ,
California Family Rights Act (CFRA) ,
Comment Period ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
FEHC ,
Governor Brown ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Notice Requirements ,
Proposed Regulation ,
State Labor Laws
As we discussed back in January, sexual harassment appears to be the hot topic for the California State Legislature’s 2018 session. This is certainly not a surprise, as issues related to sexual harassment and the #MeToo...more
2/21/2018
/ Adverse Action ,
Arbitration ,
Chamber of Commerce ,
Civil Code ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Defamation ,
DFEH ,
Domestic Violence ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
FEHA ,
Former Employee ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hotels ,
Leave of Absence ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Lobbyists ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Personal Liability ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Agencies ,
Record Retention ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Release of Claims ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Retaliation ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Stalking ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
Last year Governor Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 450 – the “Immigrant Worker Protection Act” – to prohibit employers from voluntarily consenting to federal immigration agency access to worksites without a judicial warrant,...more
2/8/2018
/ Collective Bargaining ,
DLSE ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Employment Records ,
Form I-9 ,
Governor Brown ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
Immigration Enforcement ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Search Warrant ,
Subpoenas ,
Voluntary Disclosure
Immigration has been a major flashpoint between California and the Trump Administration during the past year. In 2017, the California Legislature passed significant legislation impacting how California employers deal with...more
1/23/2018
/ Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Fines ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
Immigration Enforcement ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Raids ,
Sanctuary Cities ,
Search Warrant ,
Subpoenas ,
Trump Administration ,
Undocumented Immigrants
Technology seems to be advancing faster than we can keep up. These advances impact the employer community as well—even regarding basic things such as how, when, and in what manner wages are paid.
Take two recent examples...more
1/22/2018
/ Bitcoin ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Foreign Currency ,
IRS ,
Minimum Wage ,
Mobile Apps ,
Over-Time ,
Payroll Periods ,
Technology Sector ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Deductions
After nearly six years of discussion and debate, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board (Board) yesterday approved a standard on “Hotel Housekeeping Musculoskeletal Injury Prevention.”...more
1/22/2018
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hotels ,
New Hires ,
Office of Administrative Law ,
OSHA ,
Proposed Rules ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Risk Assessment ,
Workplace Illness and Injury Reporting ,
Workplace Injury
It’s hard to keep up with all the recent changes to labor and employment law. While the law always seems to evolve at a rapid pace, there have been an unprecedented number of changes each month in 2017. November was no...more
12/7/2017
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Appeals ,
Attorney General ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Electronic Filing ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Failed Legislation ,
Fair Workweek ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Fines ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gig Economy ,
Harassment ,
Independent Contractors ,
IRS ,
Joint Employers ,
LGBTQ ,
Marijuana ,
Misclassification ,
Paid Leave ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Proposed Rules ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Salary/Wage History ,
SCOTUS ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws ,
Tax Penalties ,
Title VII ,
Uber ,
UK ,
Wage and Hour ,
Work Schedules ,
Workplace Illness and Injury Reporting
Under legislation recently signed by Governor Jerry Brown, beginning January 1, 2018, all California employers are required to display a workplace poster related to transgender rights. The legislation, Senate Bill 396,...more
California employers will soon need to adjust themselves to a new reality once again as a number of new workplace restrictions have been passed by the state legislature and just signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown. State...more
10/17/2017
/ Ban the Box ,
Burden of Proof ,
California Family Rights Act (CFRA) ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Conditional Job Offers ,
Construction Project ,
DFEH ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Employment Policies ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Form I-9 ,
Fringe Benefits ,
Gender Identity ,
General Contractors ,
Governor Brown ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
Immigration Enforcement ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Job Applicants ,
Joint Liability ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Parental Leave ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Retaliation ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Orientation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Subcontractors ,
Trump Administration ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Whistleblowers
California joins other states and municipalities in banning inquiries into salary history of applicants. AB 168 prohibits employers from seeking salary history information or relying on the salary history information...more
On October 5, Governor Brown signed AB 450, which will go into effect on January 1, 2018. Among other things, AB 450 prohibits employers from voluntary consenting to ICE access to the worksite without a judicial warrant,...more
10/6/2017
/ DACA ,
Deportation ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Form I-9 ,
Governor Brown ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
Immigration Enforcement ,
New Legislation ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Raids ,
Sanctuary Cities ,
SEIU ,
State Labor Laws ,
Statutory Penalties ,
Subpoenas ,
Travel Ban ,
Trump Administration ,
Warrants ,
Workplace Investigations
Joining a growing list of state and local governments, San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee today signed an ordinance which will ban employers from asking job applicants about their salary histories. The new ordinance will go into...more
As introduced, Senate Bill 396 by Senator Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) dealt with medical residence training programs. However, recently the contents of the bill were stripped out and replaced with new and unrelated language...more
6/30/2017
/ Anti-Harassment Policies ,
DFEH ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gender Identity ,
Harassment ,
Pending Legislation ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Orientation ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws
There has been a lot of animated discussion in the news recently about immigration status, national security policy, and country of origin as these issues relate to federal policy. Think “travel ban” and “extreme vetting” –...more
Since the election of President Trump, the California Legislature has been vocal and active in efforts to resist announced or anticipated actions of the Trump administration. This includes efforts to make California a...more
3/28/2017
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Deportation ,
E-Verify ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Form I-9 ,
Immigrant Protection Laws ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
Immigration Enforcement ,
Labor Commissioners ,
Notice Requirements ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Sanctuary Cities ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration ,
Workplace Investigations