It’s that time of the year again! The deadline for California Governor Gavin Newsom to sign, approve without signing, or veto bills on his desk was October 10, 2021. Now that the dust has settled, we have compiled a comprehensive list of bills signed by the governor that will impact employers. We also highlight bills that … Continue Reading
A split Ninth Circuit panel vacated a 2020 preliminary injunction that blocked the enforcement of California’s A.B. 51, which prohibits mandatory arbitration clauses in employment contracts. If the majority decision stands, it will mean that California employers can no longer require their employees or new hires to sign arbitration agreements (among other types of waivers) … Continue Reading
The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), requiring employers with 50-500 employees[1] to provide supplemental paid sick leave and paid family leave to their employees, and California’s statewide COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave requirement expired on December 31, 2020. While employers may voluntarily continue to provide FFCRA and receive tax credits through March 31, 2021, … Continue Reading
On September 17, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1383 (SB-1383), which significantly expands employee eligibility for family and medical leave under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA). The law, which will go into effect January 1, 2021, reduces the number of employees required for an employer to be covered under the CFRA and … Continue Reading
On June 18, 2020, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued guidance mandating that face coverings be worn state-wide. While several California counties and cities have passed local laws requiring face coverings over the past few months, state public health officials had only previously recommended the use of face coverings. Face covering requirements People … Continue Reading
On May 6, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-62-20, which dramatically expands workers’ compensation eligibility for employees who are diagnosed with COVID-19, as part of his continued plan to create a robust safety net for California workers. The Order creates a rebuttable presumption that employees who test positive for or are diagnosed with … Continue Reading
The worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has had, and will continue to have, a substantial impact on the U.S. workplace. We have prepared a series of FAQs compiled based on some of the more common questions that clients with California-based employees have posed to us over roughly the past six weeks. These FAQs are general and high-level … Continue Reading
As we have previously reported, several states, including New Jersey, New York, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, now require employees, customers and/or the public to wear face coverings. As we have also written about, in other states, like California, local governments are leading the way. For example, Bay Area counties Sonoma, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Alameda, … Continue Reading
On July 3, California became the first state to pass legislation that bans discrimination based on natural hairstyles. Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law the CROWN Act (Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair). The CROWN Act amends the state’s Government Code and Education Code to define “race or ethnicity” as “inclusive of … Continue Reading
The California Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014 (“Healthy Families Act”) is fully effective July 1, 2015, including the significant potential for class-action liability for non-compliance. It is critical that employers ensure that their sick leave policy is current, given the ever-developing legal guidance. We have created a helpful list of common areas of … Continue Reading
Under California Labor Code 2751 (amended in 2012), effective January 1, 2013, employers must provide all commissioned employees who render services in California with a written contract detailing the method by which the commission shall be computed and paid. This law applies to all employers (both in-state and out-of-state) who pay commissions to employees working … Continue Reading
Following the lead of Maryland and Illinois, California is the latest state to stop employers from requesting social media log-in information, such as user names and passwords for Facebook, Twitter, or e-mail, from employees and job applicants. The new law also includes protections from employer retaliation against employees who refuse to provide this personal access … Continue Reading
Most employers assume that if they successfully defeat a plaintiff's motion for class certification in a wage and hour class action, the same class claims cannot be raised again in another case. On January 18, 2012, however, the California court of appeal in Bridgeford v. Pacific Health Corp, 2012 WL 130615, dashed that commonly held assumption.… Continue Reading
Effective January 1, 2012, private California employers of non-exempt employees not subject to certain collective bargaining agreements will face new reporting and recordkeeping requirements and penalties for violations of California’s aggressively-titled “Wage Theft Prevention Act” signed into law in October 2011. Similar to New York’s law of the same name enacted last year, the Act … Continue Reading
In a unanimous opinion, the California Supreme Court has ruled that California’s overtime laws apply to workers from out of state who perform work in California for a California-based employer. Sullivan v. Oracle Corp., No. 06-56649 (9th Cir. June 30, 2011). Answering certified questions from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the … Continue Reading
