The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) requires employers with five or more on payroll to engage in an “interactive process” with a worker requesting disability-related accommodation. The employer must have timely, good faith and ongoing discussions to explore if and how to reasonably accommodate the physically or mentally disabled worker’s ability to perform the essential functions of his or her job. Failure to do so can be a costly error.
Unpaid Wages and Attempt to Evade Consequences Result in Seizure of Owners’ Assets Continuing to target restaurants and other industries under its Wage Theft Is a Crime program, the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) has taken action against the Mango Gardens restaurant chain. In 2015 following a referral from Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Asian Law […]
Summer is Here – Are Your Outdoor Workers Protected from Heat Illness? Summer is upon us, time for seasonal measures to protect workers from heat illness. California’s Occupational Safety & Health Standards Board (OSHSB) 2015 regulations set the standards. See, New Heat Illness Prevention Measures Now in Place (May, 2015); Employers Must Chill (April 11, […]
Cheesecake Factory and Its Janitorial Contractors Assessed $4.57 Million for “Wage Theft” The state Labor Commissioner has assessed Cheesecake Factory Restaurants, Inc. and two contractors hired for janitorial services some $4.57 million for underpayment of minimum wage and overtime to 559 janitorial workers at eight Southern California locations. The decision is a significant caution to […]
Employees are Free to Leave Work Premises During Paid Rest Breaks According to California’s Division of Labor Standards Enforcement, employees are entitled to a “net” ten-minute paid rest break for every four hours worked, or major fraction thereof (i.e., anything more than two hours of work). “Net” here means the rest period begins as soon […]
California Employers May Not Require “On-Call” Rest Breaks California businesses have a well-established duty to provide their employees a “net” ten-minute paid rest break for every four hours worked, or major fraction thereof (i.e., anything more than two hours of work). (“Net” here means the time an employee spends reaching and returning from his/her rest […]
Recent Supreme Court Decision Resolves Some Questions, Leaves Another The California Supreme Court has clarified some of the requirements for employees’ weekly day of rest while leaving another open to interpretation. Labor Code 551 and 552, respectively, provide: “Every person employed in any occupation of labor is entitled to one day’s rest therefrom in seven” […]
New Regulations Coming to Prevent Heat Illness in the California Workplace California’s Occupational Safety & Health Standards Board (OSHSB) created heat illness prevention regulations for outdoor workers in 2015. See New Heat Illness Prevention Measures Now in Place. Those regulations require specific protective measures for outdoor work, including provision of free, fresh, and “suitably cool” […]
California Piece Pay Employers’ Final Step Is Payment and Documentation Submitted to the State Several California industries – trucking and agriculture in particular – have utilized “piece-rate” pay for many years, commonly to the benefit of management and employees alike. Drivers have earned by the miles traveled or loads delivered, field workers have made their […]
Employers Must Give Close Attention To the Required Special Pay Calculation California’s New Piece Rate Requirements: For many industries in California, paying employees on a piece rate system has been a long-time win-win for management and workers. Truckers earning by the miles driven, mechanics paid by a percentage of amounts charged to customers, and field […]