Class Action Waivers Upheld in Employment Arbitration Agreements In a rare victory for employers, the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that companies may require workers, as a condition of employment, to sign arbitration agreements that waive the right to participate in workplace-related class action claims. Epic System Corp. v. Lewis. An arbitration agreement is a…
Read moreNew California Regulations Take Effect July 1, 2018 California law prohibits discrimination against employees and applicants for their membership in any protected class, including national origin. The California Fair Employment and Housing Council (FEHC), which enacts regulations to protect employees and job candidates from unlawful discrimination, harassment and retaliation, recently issued greater national origin protections. Effective…
Read moreIndependent Contractor Status in California Now Falls Under Radically Different Rules The California Supreme Court has issued a landmark decision drastically redefining who can be classified an independent contractor. Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court. The new criteria potentially expose tens of thousands of businesses who have relied on the old rules to legal…
Read moreFiguring Out the Final Paycheck When a worker’s employment ends, what should be included in a final paycheck is determined by California’s laws, the employer’s specific policies in place during the employment period, and the circumstances of the employment ending. When an employer terminates a worker without advance notice, all wages and earned but unused…
Read moreHow to Handle Customers’ Service Animals On Tuesday afternoon a customer walks in your restaurant with his giant Deerhound and starts ordering lunch for both of them. The waitress, surprised and unsure about this arrangement, asks her supervisor if the customer needs to leave because of the “no pets allowed” policy. May the supervisor promptly…
Read moreCalculating Travel Pay in California Hourly employees must be paid for all “hours worked.” Where an employee is required to travel for work, near or far, the employer must compensate the worker for that time. Exceptions are normal commute time or road trip downtime. Thus, an hourly worker who watches a movie through a flight for business is…
Read moreHow to Handle Assistive Animals in the Workplace Upon arriving to work on Monday morning your customer service manager asks if she can bring her monkey to the office. Must management grant her request? It depends. If she needs the monkey to reasonably accommodate her disability, then the employer will most likely have to grant…
Read moreEffectively Manage Paid Vacations No California employer is obligated to provide paid vacation time to its workers. However, such benefit is a common practice, promoting morale and productivity. Once a company grants paid vacation (for example, one week annually), it is considered an accruing benefit, i.e., an employee earns it gradually throughout the working year. …
Read moreCompton School District Failed to Accommodate Disabled Teacher 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 accommodation of a disability. The employer must have timely, good faith and ongoing discussions to explore if and how to reasonably…
Read moreLearn California’s Specific Pay Stub Requirements to Avoid Penalties Attorneys for employees alleging underpayment or other wage irregularities will regularly add a pay stub violation claim to the mix. By definition, if an employer has erred in wage calculations, it has messed up the earnings statements. California law on the specific information that must be…
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