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In "Sign of the Times, “Workplace Know Your Rights Act", Response to Federal Raids (October 24, 2025), we relayed California employers’ requirements, beginning February 1, 2026, to provide each worker an annual, stand-alone notice summarizing key labor protections and constitutional rights.
In "Sign of the Times, “Workplace Know Your Rights Act", Response to Federal Raids (October 24, 2025), we relayed California employers’ requirements, beginning February 1, 2026, to provide each worker an annual, stand-alone notice summarizing key labor protections and constitutional rights.
These incoming Labor Code sections aim to standardize and expand the scope of such notices in the face of growing Homeland Security aggression. The state has since issued a template notice.
An employer is required to notify any worker’s designated emergency contact in the event the employee is arrested or detained.
Thus, no later than March 30, 2026, an employer must provide each employee the opportunity to name that emergency contact. The employer shall then provide all new employees that opportunity at the time of hiring.
Take-Away: By March 30, 2026, employers must inform and provide each worker the means to designate his/her emergency contact in the event of arrest or detention
● on the worksite;
● during work hours; or
● during the performance of that worker’s duties.
The Labor Commissioner or public prosecutor are to enforce all “Know Your Rights” requirements, with penalties of between $500 and $10,000 per violation.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.See also:
Helena KobrinMarch
27, 2026
Workplace policies define appropriate conduct and best practices in your place of business, enabling efficient and productive operations.
Workplace policies define appropriate conduct and best practices in your place of business, enabling efficient and productive operations. To these ends, our 2026 Workplace Policy Forms & Handbook provide a practical “hire-to-fire” foundation designed to align everyday workplace operations with current legal requirements.2026 Model Forms Include:
All 2026 forms orders also include sample hiring checklists, providing practical guidance to help ensure consistent, documented compliance throughout the onboarding process.2026 Model Employee Handbook (80+ Pages) Includes:
Client Feedback:“Tim’s office makes HR matters so much easier! We just have to do what they tell us to do. We order their updated hiring forms and employee handbook each year and it keeps us protected simply with the correct up-to-date wording (since laws are always changing) that we would otherwise not know about. Just the hiring forms alone have saved us thousands of dollars in one lawsuit. We also take part in their yearly HR seminar, which keeps us up-to-date on new laws and key points to follow to keep us protected. I HIGHLY recommend any employer to connect with Tim and his team – especially in these current times!” – LO
CONTACT US TO ORDER NOW To order or for more information, contact Office Manager Aimee Rosalesat 626.583.6600 or email her at officemgr@tbowleslaw.com
March 26, 2026
I got started in Africa in 2004, in Tanzania. Now, 2026, I have never fully come home. Some snapshots:
I got started in Africa in 2004, in Tanzania. Now, 2026, I have never fully come home. Some snapshots:
Thursday, 12 August 04 [flight to Inyonga, drive to Katavi National Park, Rungwa River Camp]
Serge and his Excel single-engine touches down at the dirt strip at Msembe Ranger Station at around 10:00. We load and take off. Through the prop drone and air dance, it is a desert below, wilderness, dry stream beds, kopjes [rock promontories], low trees, grey/greens, khaki flats, some ghost clouds, horizon lost in the blurring mix of air and dust. 10,420 feet above sea level and horizontal, headed W x N, 29 degrees, 135 knots over the ground.
We land an hour-plus west at Inyonga. Serge comes around the strip 300 meters off the deck. Several kids are waving at us from the tamped down yards of rectangular, mud-block huts, rich reddish-brown earth. As we come in for the approach, people are hurrying in from everywhere and nowhere to line-up on one side of the strip. By the time we reach the unloading zone, the area is massed, if not mobbed, with people.
All ages are here, mostly young, between 5 and 12 years, mostly boys, some in collared shirts, some in rags, wide eyes, curious; the crowd buzzing. More people flood in from the adjoining blocks of town; no-one’s speaking any English, all in Swahili or whatever tribal language prevails. The townies are shoulder-to-shoulder, five or six deep to see the Westerners fall out of the plane. Last to exit, I give a big hello to the waiting front row of open-faced, belly-high boys. They absorb the greeting, no-one venturing to offer any motion back.
Now the kids press in closely, eight and ten thick. “Hello, jambo!” Their shy curiosity is broken quickly by the digital LCD displays on our cameras. I take a shot of them craning, waving and beaming into the camera and then instantly show the results. Unrestrained exhilaration rolls over the young in waves, jostling for the closest look and exchange with the white guy from the sky. They are like kids anywhere, seemingly let out of school and on a lark, the bold ones, the followers, the clowns, the show-offs. Daudi, in Swahili, has a tough time getting the boys to acknowledge they are skipping school, but it is clear they are educated by their easy ability to answer his math questions …
In town, Daudi points to the tall plum tree hard-by the main intersection. This is the service mark of the Arabic slave traders who established the East African routes for stolen humanity some 500 years ago. In their wake, most people of this area adopted and have passed-on Islam to this day.
Inyonga is loosely translated as “hanging tree” or “strangulation tree.” This city was an execution center when the Germans ran the show in the 1800s …
We leave to the southwest over a narrow track that Daudi classes as a high-quality Tanzanian roadway. A lot is thick sand, which he attacks at 40 mph or more; then axle-cracking ridges and shelves; then more sand; no road signs; mud-block huts and bare dirt front spaces with young kids, old women waving; more sand tracks which D wrestles through at high speed like he was bringing a bull to the ground; me in the rider’s front seat, thinking that if everything else around here is living on the edge, elemental life-and-death, why not me?; no windshield, no seat-belt, no side-door (just a low-lying piece of wood).
Of course, the sole safety feature of this hurdling mass is D’s driving skill. He plows through the straight stretches like there is no tomorrow, the thin miambo trees hugging in on the road, all young growth, not likely to kill, only to slow if we went off-kilter …
As we work our way on a slow stretch through the miambo, two guys approach, walking a bicycle. We stop. They are Sukuma tribe cowboys, dressed like Andre 3000 in the middle of absolute nowhere, one guy in a Cat-in-the-Hat knit cap, black and bright horizontal striping, luminescent gold and yellow scarf, overcoat, leggings and bright plastic rings of all colors stacked from ankle to mid-calf. The other guy was nearly his Big Boi equal, also gaily scarfed, swiping easily at the tse-tse as we talked. They had come nearly 100 k today and were headed well north of Inyonga.
The Sukuma are the largest of the 125 tribes in Tanzania, comprising some 6% of the total population, starting south of Lake Victoria and spreading throughout the nation. They have taken it upon themselves to dress in wild combos of traditional and “modern,” like Bob Marley hyperventilating. They have an annual fashion festival. Daudi describes one warrior who topped off his traditional battle dress with pink bra and panties.
The track gets no better as we come down from flat plateau, through the trees, among mountains and into the Katavi river system. Katavi, where “unimproved” would be an improvement.
The obscure track to camp leads off and down to the left from the “main roadway,” twin lines through the grass. Daudi has us walk the quarter mile to avoid getting hit by the thin filaments of the “upupu” pods, a pea-like sheath hanging from vines on each side of the trail. They are not painful, but produce a nearly unbearable discomfort, one that has driven D and his friends into waters infested with hippo and croc just to try and attain some relief. He is convinced that enough of this can drive a person insane.
It is dark shortly after arrival. The beer is very good, the rice and beef goulash welcome with D’s green three-alarm chili.
Toward bed, the hyena are evident, calling to each other up and down this dry rocky riverbed. Going back to tent, I keep spotting little glistenings among the leaves. These are eight-eyed spiders, one of them rather large, tarantula quality. The crew has placed a line of ash placed across the path leading from our tents to the river bed. The headlamp reveals the apparent motive, an intense line of ants, maybe three inches wide, moving right-to-left across the path, just the other side of the ash line.
The night passes quickly.
Tim Bowles
March 20, 2026
California employers face a difficult question: are employees genuinely learning from sexual harassment prevention training, or just checking a box?
California employers face a difficult question: are employees genuinely learning from sexual harassment prevention training, or just checking a box?
Every two years, employers with five or more on payroll must provide sexual harassment prevention training to California employees (on-site or remote). Supervisors must receive at least two hours; nonsupervisory employees must receive at least one hour. New hires must complete training within six months of hire.
The required instruction must include:
With nearly twenty years of classroom-style delivery by experienced employment-law attorneys, we offer live onsite and live webinar training.
In-person classroom-style and live interactive webinars significantly outperform point-and-click e-training:
Feedback from a recent seminar:
“They did anti-harassment training with our office and it was great. Having the in-person training was a lot better in my opinion and the employees had good feedback. I highly recommend them for any of your legal needs. Thank you!” – MK
Our programs meet all California legal requirements while creating an engaging learning environment that supports real behavioral change.
March 20, 2026
Contact us TODAY for more information, pricing or to schedule your workforce’s seminar or webinar (626) 583-6600 or officemgr@tbowleslaw.com
California does not give employers the benefit of the doubt. A Bowles Law workplace compliance review is a structured, attorney-guided examination of employer practices, policies, and documentation against current California and federal employment law requirements.
California does not give employers the benefit of the doubt.
The state leads the nation in the density, complexity, and sheer volume of workplace regulations. Most employers caught in the crosshairs of a wage-and-hour class action suit or a Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) action are not bad actors. They are well-intentioned businesses that simply did not know what they should have — until a disgruntled former employee and his or her attorney file a court claim to explain it to them, at considerable expense. The antidote is not luck. It is knowledge and the willingness to correct improper practices.
What a Compliance Review Is
A Bowles Law workplace compliance review is a structured, attorney-guided examination of an employer’s practices, policies, and documentation against the current requirements of California and federal employment law.
This is not a general legal audit or a box-checking exercise. It is a targeted, practical look at where a business may be exposed — and what it can do about it before a claim is filed.
What We Review
Our compliance review examines the areas that generate the most claims, the highest penalties, and the greatest litigation risk for California employers, including:
Wage and Hour Practices
Pay Statements
Employee Classification
Workplace Policies and Handbook
Hiring and Onboarding
Leave Laws
Why It Matters: The PAGA Reality
California’s Private Attorneys General Act allows a single aggrieved employee — current or former — to sue on behalf of all others and collect civil penalties for each confirmed Labor Code violation. With penalties beginning at $100 per violation per pay period, even a modest workforce and a seemingly minor deficiency can produce seven-figure exposure.
Class action and PAGA filings have reached record levels in recent years and show no sign of slowing. Employers who have never faced a claim are not necessarily compliant — they may simply have not yet encountered the employee or attorney who looked closely enough.
PAGA’s 2024 reforms gave employers greater opportunity to cure violations before and after a notice is filed. But the best cure remains the one applied before the notice arrives.
The Cost of Waiting
An employer motivated to review its practices after surviving an expensive legal challenge has learned an important, hard lesson. Best practice is to build those protections before the claim is asserted — when corrections are manageable and costs are controlled.
The cost to fix problems found during a compliance review is a business-saving investment compared to the cost of defending the lawsuit that may follow.
Take-Aways
California’s regulatory climate is unforgiving of well-intentioned but uninformed practices. A periodic workplace compliance review is not pessimism — it is sound management. It is the difference between steering the ship away from danger and reacting when it hits the rocks.
Bowles Law conducts compliance reviews for employers of all sizes across California. The scope is tailored to each client’s workforce, industry, and particular areas of concern.
For more information or to schedule a review, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth, or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Tim Bowles
March 13, 2026
A Long Island Walmart initially accommodated an employee with disabilities but new management eliminated the accommodations and terminated the employee, resulting in a $60,000 EEOC settlement for disability discrimination under the ADA.
A Long Island Walmart did the right thing in 2017 when it accommodated an employee with hearing, speech and cognitive impairments so she could better understand her work assignments. As a result, the employee was able to perform well, rated as providing “valued performance.”
Yet, in 2020, new Walmart managers discontinued the accommodations, later terminating the employee for insubordination over an ensuing conflict.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued Walmart for disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act and settled for $60,000. The retailer is also required to train managers and HR personnel on the ADA and reasonable accommodations, submit compliance reports to the EEOC, and post notice of disability rights and the settlement on the bulletin board.
EEOC regional attorney Kimberly Cruz observed: “Federal law prohibits firing an employee because of a disability or the need for a reasonable accommodation. If an employer’s unlawful failure to accommodate a disability leads to an employee’s termination, the firing itself may also be unlawful under the Americans with Disabilities Act.”
TAKE-AWAYS:
Unless there is an undue hardship, employers must reasonably accommodate disabled employees to facilitate their job performance. When management changes, employers should ensure the new bosses do not eliminate those accommodations.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
March 13, 2026
Meal and rest break violations remain a leading source of wage-and-hour litigation in California. This post identifies five common employer mistakes and offers practical corrective measures.
Meal and rest break violations remain a leading source of wage-and-hour litigation in California. Many claims arise from routine practices that employers can correct with proper oversight.
1. Allowing, but Not Providing a Timely Meal Period
Employers must provide a first meal period of at least 30 minutes no later than the end of the fifth hour of work, and a second when an employee works more than ten hours.
“Available” is not enough. Employers must relieve employees of all duty, relinquish control over their activities, and permit a reasonable opportunity to take an uninterrupted 30-minute break without impeding or discouraging them from doing so. A clear, California-compliant written policy communicated to employees and supervisors is central to meeting that standard.
That said, employers need not police breaks or ensure no work is performed. If an employee voluntarily works through a properly provided break, the employer is generally not in violation, though it must of course pay for all time worked.
Missed break liability arises from vague or missing policies, untrained supervisors, production pressure, or scheduling that pushes breaks past the deadline. Late, interrupted, or on-duty meal periods attributable to management trigger premium pay and potential penalties.
2. Automatically Deducting Meal Periods
Automatic 30-minute deductions create risk if employees skip or shorten breaks. Time records must reflect actual practice.
3. Letting Rest Breaks Slide
Employers must authorize and permit a paid 10-minute rest period for every four hours worked or major fraction thereof.
Supervisors who discourage breaks, fail to provide coverage, or assign workloads that prevent breaks expose the employer to liability, even if no written policy prohibits breaks.
4. Failing to Pay Premiums
If a compliant meal or rest period is not provided, the employer owes one additional hour of so-called premium pay at the employee’s regular rate for each workday a violation occurs.
Premium pay is mandatory. Failure to pay it timely may result in waiting time penalties and wage statement claims.
5. Inconsistent Policies and Spotty Documentation
Inconsistent practices increase litigation and PAGA risk. Common issues include:
Take-Aways
Employers should update policies; audit time records for late, short, or missed breaks; train supervisors to avoid discouraging breaks; provide a clear reporting process; and pay premiums promptly when owed.
Proactive compliance reduces exposure to class actions and PAGA claims.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Cindy Bamforth
March 6, 2026
California's Department of Industrial Relations announced updated compensation thresholds for physicians and surgeons, with the minimum hourly rate increasing to $107.17 effective January 1, 2026—a 3.3% adjustment.
overtime compensation upon receipt of specified minimum hourly compensation. That rate changes annually.
exempts certain licensed physicians and surgeons from
California’s Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) announced the January 1, 2026 rate increases for this minimum to $107.17, up from $103.75, reflecting the 3.3% increase in the California Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers.
Employers that pay eligible professionals this minimum hourly rate and accurately track hours worked do not need to pay overtime to those employees.
The physician or surgeon skills and duties criteria in Labor Code section 515.6 must also be met. Principally, the employee must be “primarily engaged” (more than 50% of the time) in duties requiring licensure.
California Business and Professions Code section 2052 specifies such duties, requiring a medical license for anyone who “practices or attempts to practice, or who advertises or holds himself or herself out as practicing, any system or mode of treating the sick or afflicted in this state, or diagnoses, treats, operates for, or prescribes for any ailment, blemish, deformity, disease, disfigurement, disorder, injury, or other physical or mental condition of any person.”
Physicians and surgeons paid on a salary basis will not qualify for this exemption, but may otherwise qualify for the administrative, executive or professional exemptions from overtime. Each category possesses its own distinct requirements.
For more information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
March 6, 2026
Covering Employment Legal Essentialsand New Workplace Laws
Covering Employment Legal Essentials and New Workplace Laws
Secure your spot for our virtual sessions on "what's new" in California employment law for 2026.
The all-day session includes, among much more:
The session is a must for all business owners, executives and personnel management staff, the foundation for confident hiring and stable business expansion in the new year and beyond.
We emphasize practical application with attendees encouraged to seek guidance on their particular legal challenges or concerns.
Electronic samples of our 2026 updated model employee handbook, policies and forms are included.
From past attendees:
"This seminar is a great service to our community and the employers of this state! I look forward to attending more of them. I feel better prepared to confront what it will take to put a lawful workplace into existence. Thank you, Tim, and your staff, for this great service and the useful materials you provide." - CR
"The webinar with Tim and Cindy was extremely informative and provided knowledge that was key to operating my business. I enjoyed the presentation and all of the accompanying materials. I'm sure to recommend the Law Offices of Timothy Bowles to any business with employment law needs. The professionalism of the attorneys and their ability to present the complexity of California employment law to all attendees was exceptional!" - TT
"This has been an INVALUABLE service! Tim Bowles and staff have put together the materials and the counseling (in terms of live response to questions) that gives us the data necessary to be compliant with both the state and federal government. Worth very much more than the cost. My team and I can't thank you all enough for your superior product!" TS
Choose from:
Friday, January 30, 2026, 9:30 - 4:30pm (break midway)
Friday, February 27, 2026, 9:30 - 4:30pm (break midway)
Pricing: $200 first company attendee; $175 for each additional person attending
DON'T WAIT!
Contact Aimee Rosales to reserve your space.
Email: officemgr@tbowleslaw.com; phone 626.583.6600.