There are many ways to run afoul of labor laws and spook your investors—one of the most common for startups is “creative” pay practices. In this video, Fenwick employment litigation partners Dan McCoy and Sheeva...more
2016 brought several employment law developments that will undoubtedly affect your workplace. The Fenwick & West Employment Practices Group invites you to attend its annual complimentary briefing to learn more about the most...more
12/12/2016
/ Arbitration ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
EEO-1 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Events ,
LGBTQ ,
NLRB ,
Paid Leave ,
Separation Agreement ,
Sick Leave ,
Social Media Policy ,
Unfair Competition ,
Wage and Hour
Governor Brown recently signed into state law the following employment law bills (among others):
SB 358—Referred to as the California Fair Pay Act, this law is directed at closing the pay differential between male and...more
In Sakkab v. Luxottica Retail North America, Inc., the Ninth Circuit affirmed the California Supreme Court’s Iskanian v. CLS Transportation Los Angeles, LLC decision (originally summarized in our June 2012 issue), which held...more
A California Court of Appeal in Cardenas v. M. Fanaian, D.D.S., Inc. held that Labor Code § 1102.5, which protects employees from retaliation for reporting illegal conduct to law enforcement agencies, applies to an employee’s...more
Legislative Update -
Governor Brown recently signed into state law the following employment law bills (among others):
SB 358—Referred to as the California Fair Pay Act, this law is directed at closing the pay...more
10/26/2015
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
AT&T Mobility v Concepcion ,
Background Checks ,
Chipotle Grill ,
Class Action ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Employment Application ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Fair Pay Act ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Governor Brown ,
Governor Vetoes ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Job Applicants ,
Labor Code ,
Misclassification ,
Motion to Compel ,
New Legislation ,
Over-Time ,
Preemption ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Remand ,
Retaliation ,
SCOTUS ,
Substantially Similar ,
Title VII ,
Transgender ,
Void and Unenforceable ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Statements ,
Waivers ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers ,
Wrongful Termination
This month, the California Legislature enacted AB 304, an urgency measure that became effective on July 13 and provides much needed clarity on various aspects of California’s mandatory paid sick leave law (Healthy Workplaces,...more
The federal Department of Labor (“DOL”) released a proposed rule to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act’s white-collar employee exemptions (i.e., executive, administrative, professional, outside sales, and computer...more
New Amendments Clarify California Paid Sick Leave -
This month, the California Legislature enacted AB 304, an urgency measure that became effective on July 13 and provides much needed clarity on various aspects of...more
7/28/2015
/ Accrued Benefits ,
Administrative Interpretation ,
Credit Checks ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
DLSE ,
Employee Rights ,
Employment Policies ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Healthy Workplaces Healthy Families Act 2014 ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Minimum Wage ,
Paid Leave ,
Primary Beneficiary Test ,
Sick Leave ,
Unpaid Interns ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
Does California Business and Professions Code § 16600 prohibit employees from waiving their right to reemployment with prior employers? The answer is maybe, according to the Ninth Circuit’s recent decision in Golden v. Calif....more
New California Family Rights Act (“CFRA”) regulations become effective on July 1, 2015. The regulations provide needed clarification and bring the CFRA more closely in line with the federal Family and Medical Leave Act...more
Ninth Circuit Reviews Enforceability of Waiver of Right to Reemployment -
Does California Business and Professions Code § 16600 prohibit employees from waiving their right to reemployment with prior employers? The...more
4/29/2015
/ Business & Professions Code ,
California Family Rights Act (CFRA) ,
H-1B ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Minimum Wage ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Offensive Language ,
Protected Activity ,
Termination ,
Visa Caps ,
Wage and Hour
The United States Supreme Court recently held in Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc. v. Busk et al. that time spent waiting for and undergoing post-shift security checks is not compensable under the Fair Labor Standards Act...more
The National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or the “Board”) has yet again expanded employees’ rights to discuss the terms and conditions of their employment or otherwise engage in protected activity. In Purple Communications,...more
Waiting for and Undergoing Security Checks Not Compensable Time -
The United States Supreme Court recently held in Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc. v. Busk et al. that time spent waiting for and undergoing post-shift...more
1/13/2015
/ Cell Phones ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Integrity Staffing v Busk ,
Labor Code ,
NLRB ,
Paid Leave ,
Reimbursements ,
SCOTUS ,
Security Checks ,
Sick Leave ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblowers
In Kao v. University of San Francisco, a California appellate court upheld a jury’s verdict that the University of San Francisco (“USF”) lawfully terminated a professor who refused to undergo a fitness-for-duty examination....more
On September 10, 2014, Governor Brown signed into law AB 1522 (Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014), which requires all California employers, large or small, to provide employees paid sick leave (with limited...more
California Becomes Second State to Mandate Paid Sick Leave -
On September 10, 2014, Governor Brown signed into law AB 1522 (Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014), which requires all California employers,...more
In Brooks v. Grundmann, a federal court of appeals in the District of Columbia held that a manager’s conduct amounted to no more than “ordinary tribulations of the workplace” and was thus insufficient to support a minority...more
A California appeals court in White v. County of Los Angeles held that an employer could require a fitness-for-duty examination after returning an employee to work based on her medical provider’s certificate, provided that...more
In EEOC v. Ford Motor Company, the federal Sixth Circuit appellate court (covering Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee) recently held that telecommuting may be a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with...more
Disability Accommodation Through Telecommuting More Reasonable In Modern Workplace -
In EEOC v. Ford Motor Company, the federal Sixth Circuit appellate court (covering Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee) recently...more
5/19/2014
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Disability ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employee Rights ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fitness for Duty Exams ,
Ford Motor ,
Internships ,
Minimum Wage ,
Telecommuting ,
Unpaid Interns ,
Wages
The Ninth Circuit (California) held in Escriba v. Foster Poultry Farms, Inc. that an employee can choose to use vacation instead of leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) or California Family Rights Act...more
In a landmark whistleblower decision by the United States Supreme Court, Lawson, et al. v. FMR LLC, et al., the Court held that the whistleblower protections under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (“SOX”) apply not only to...more
In February, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed the Fair Chance Ordinance, which limits when and to what extent employers can inquire into the criminal history of applicants and employees. The ordinance also...more