Blog
HUMAN RIGHTS DAY FORUM: TERRORISM AND CIVIL LIBERTIES
Defining Freedom in the Post 9-11 World Please save the date: Saturday, December 10, 2011 9:30 A.M. – NOON Youth for Human Rights International and United for Human Rights present: TERRORISM AND CIVIL LIBERTIES Defining Freedom in the Post 9-11 World Brunch with presentations and panel to follow. Church of Scientology of Pasadena 35 S. […]
GENDER EQUALITY AND DISCRIMINATION IN THE WORKPLACE
Employment sex or gender discrimination arises from treating male and female employees with comparable skills and in comparable jobs differently. Personnel decisions must be made on the basis of skills and other job-related qualifications. Unless a person’s sex is a job requirement (e.g., locker room attendants in a sports club), choosing to hire, discipline, fire, […]
ENGLISH-ONLY AND FLUENCY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE WORKPLACE
Breaking the Language Barrier A company catering to English-speaking clientele may implement appropriate English-only rules and language fluency requirements in the name of customer service. However, such employers must ensure that such policies are fairly and only applied for business-based reasons. For example, declining to hire an individual who speaks English proficiently with an unfamiliar […]
EMPLOYEE MEAL AND REST PERIODS
Are California Employers Responsible if Workers Skip Them? California companies must provide non-union workers with at least a 30 minute unpaid meal break between shifts and at least a ten minute paid break during each shift. See, “Employee Meal Periods and Rest Breaks, California’s Basic Requirements for R&R,” April 8, 2011. However, even though the […]
WHEN IT’S TIME TO CONTACT AN EMPLOYMENT LAWYER
Knowing When to Call for Reinforcements There’s a saying that no-one likes lawyers … until you need one. While experienced and knowledgeable managers are usually capable of handling basic employment issues, there are pitfalls in the more complex or high stakes situations for which consultation with an employment and labor lawyer is probably a good […]
DON’T BE HAUNTED BY YOUR OFFICE HALLOWEEN PARTY
Halloween looms. An office party for the occasion may be a great way to boost employee morale. However, as with holiday parties, a killer get-together can have frightening results if not planned properly. Here are some guidelines to ensure your Halloween party doesn’t come back to haunt you: Suggest “work-appropriate” costumes: Surely more than a […]
ADDED NOTICE REQUIREMENT FOR CALIFORNIA EMPLOYERS
Specific Written Disclosures to New Hires Effective January 1, 2012, California Assembly Bill AB 469 will require private employers to distribute a document “in the language the employer normally uses to communicate employment-related information” to all hourly employees at the time of their hire. The written notice must include: The rate or rates of pay […]
EXPANDED PREGNANCY HEALTH BENEFITS LAW FOR MOST CALIFORNIA EMPLOYEES
California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed Senate Bill 299 into law extending health insurance coverage benefits for employees out on pregnancy disability leave, effective January 1, 2012. As covered in “Pregnancy Disability Leave,” California employers with five or more persons on payroll (whether full- or part-time) must provide any female employee up to four months […]
INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS AND EMPLOYEES
Avoiding Misclassification of Hired Workers in California For possible cost savings and ease in administration, businesses are sometimes tempted to classify people working regularly as “independent contractors” instead of “employee.” In California, as in other states, independent contractors are usually not entitled to most of the benefits that employer must provide employees, including minimum wage, […]
EMPLOYEE RIGHTS TO ORGANIZE A UNION
New NLRB Poster Will Now Be Required for Many Employers on January 31, 2012 The federal National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) guarantees the right of employees to organize unions to “bargain collectively” with their employees. With a few exceptions, employers will soon have to conspicuously display the agency’s “Employee Rights under the National Labor Relations […]