In July 2025, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued two important memos regarding religious accommodations and religious expression in federal workplaces. ...more
8/4/2025
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Executive Orders ,
First Amendment ,
Office of Personnel Management (OPM) ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Expression ,
Title VII ,
Trump Administration
California lawmakers introduced numerous bills early in the 2025 legislative session that could affect California employment law in significant ways. Although it is too soon to predict which bills, if any, will advance, the...more
3/25/2025
/ Automated Decision Systems (ADS) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Policies ,
Job Ads ,
Pay Transparency ,
Proposed Legislation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Surveillance ,
Training Requirements ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Theft
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently released a fact sheet that explains why employers need to be careful in using wearable technologies so they do not violate federal nondiscrimination laws. ...more
1/27/2025
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Biometric Information ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Protected Class ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Wearable Technology
New California employment laws are scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2025. These laws address a variety of issues, including the state minimum wage, discrimination protections, paid time off, and employers’ messages...more
12/11/2024
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Audits ,
Child Labor ,
Compliance ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
FEHA ,
Independent Contractors ,
Minimum Wage ,
Posting Requirements ,
State Labor Laws ,
Unruh Civil Rights Act ,
Wage and Hour
On September 28, 2024, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Senate Bill (SB) No. 988, the Freelance Worker Protection Act (FWPA). The FWPA provides minimum requirements for agreements between freelance workers and...more
California is on the verge of adding yet one more prohibited employment practice to the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA).
On September 9, 2024, the California Legislature presented Governor Gavin Newsom...more
On April 15, 2024, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued its final rule implementing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA). The final rule will be published in the Federal Register on April 19,...more
The new California employment-related laws that came out of the 2023 legislative session address a number of issues that will affect many employers. Leave (paid family leave, sick leave, and reproductive loss leave),...more
On October 8, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed Senate Bill (SB) No. 731. If enacted into law, SB 731 would have required employers to provide at least 30 calendar days’ advance written notice before requiring...more
On October 8, 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Senate Bill (SB) No. 497—also referred to as the Equal Pay and Anti-Retaliation Protection Act. SB 497 amends California Labor Code Sections 98.6, 1102.5, and 1197.5...more
On January 31, 2022, the California State Assembly passed Assembly Bill (AB) No. 257, the Fast Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act (FAST Recovery Act), which would potentially provide increased rights to the...more
On November 30, 2020, California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health, more commonly known as Cal/OSHA, adopted COVID-19 Prevention Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) for California. Among other topics, the ETS...more
On November 19, 2020, the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board, the standards-setting agency of the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA), adopted an emergency standard...more
On September 9, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill (AB) 1867, which requires large employers and some health care providers to provide up to 80 hours of paid leave for COVID-19–related...more
Since the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued instructions, statements, and guidance to help employers navigate COVID-19’s workplace impact. On May 5, 2020, the...more
With the start of a new year, in-house counsel and human resources professionals will want to be aware of what’s on the horizon for 2020 and beyond. It’s a good time for employers to take a breath and consider what issues...more
1/3/2020
/ ADEA ,
Baby Boomers ,
Canada ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
FEHA ,
Fluctuating Workweek ,
Food Service Workers ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Joint Employers ,
Labor Regulations ,
Leave of Absence ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Mobile Apps ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Pending Legislation ,
Piece-Rate Pay ,
Public Health ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Right of First Refusal ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Planning ,
Tip Credit ,
Tipped Employees ,
Tips ,
USCIS ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wellness Programs ,
Work Schedules ,
Workplace Violence
On October 1, 2018, San Francisco’s amendments to its Fair Chance Ordinance (FCO) took effect. The FCO is San Francisco’s “ban the box” equivalent that regulates employers’ use of applicants’ and employees’ arrest and...more
10/31/2018
/ Amended Regulation ,
Background Checks ,
Ban the Box ,
Conditional Job Offers ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Chance Act ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Local Ordinance ,
Notice Requirements
On October 15, 2017, Governor Brown signed Senate Bill (SB) 396 into law. California employers with 50 or more employees currently must provide two hours of sexual harassment training for supervisors every two years. This...more
On July 19, 2017, San Francisco became the latest jurisdiction to enact a law banning employers from asking job applicants about their salary histories. The San Francisco “Parity in Pay” Ordinance will become effective on...more