We invite you to review our newly-posted January 2024 California Employment Law Notes, a comprehensive review of the latest and most significant developments in California employment law. The highlights include:
California Labor Code
Trial Court Gave Erroneous Jury Instructions In Whistleblower Case
Garrabrants v. Erhart, 2023 WL 9016436 (Cal. Ct. App. 2023)
Charles Matthew Erhart was an internal auditor for a financial institution who “blew the whistle” on the employer concerning the actions of the bank’s CEO, Gregory Garrabrants. While Erhart’s whistleblower case was pending in federal court, Garrabrants sued Erhart in state court for copying, retaining and transmitting to multiple regulatory authorities documents Erhart believed…
November 2023 California Employment Law Notes
We invite you to review our newly-posted November 2023 California Employment Law Notes, a comprehensive review of the latest and most significant developments in California employment law. The highlights include:
- Company That Hired Competitor’s Employee Was Not Entitled To Arbitrate Claims
- Disability Discrimination Claim Was Properly Dismissed On Summary Judgment
- Employee’s Attorney’s “Pervasive Incivility” Justified $460,000 Reduction In Fees
- Employees Were Properly Awarded $7.2 Million
…
Employee’s Meal and Rest Break PAGA Claims Survive Summary Judgment
Arce v. Ensign Grp., Inc., 96 Cal. App. 5th 622 (2023)
Cecilia Arce worked as a certified nursing assistant at a skilled nursing facility. After her employer terminated her, she brought claims under the Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) that she worked through meal and rest periods and was not paid premiums she was owed for meal and rest breaks after her termination. The…
Employer Improperly Delayed Pay To Employees Terminated After Onset Of COVID-19
Hartstein v. Hyatt Corp., 82 F.4th 825 (9th Cir. 2023)
Karen Hartstein represents a certified class of former Hyatt employees who were laid off after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. The class alleged that Hyatt violated California law by failing to pay them immediately for their accrued vacation time and by failing to compensate them for the value of the…
The Case for a PAGA Adequacy Requirement
In Arias v. Superior Court, 46 Cal. 4th 969 (2009), the California Supreme Court ruled that Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) actions need not satisfy class action requirements, and in the fourteen years since, PAGA plaintiffs have routinely (and often successfully) resisted attempts to apply class action principles to PAGA actions. A recent unpublished California Court of Appeal decision bucks that trend by lending…
In a Surprise Move, California Enacts Boatload of New Pro-Employer Laws – Nah, Just Kidding, It’s Going to be More Burdensome than Ever!
In what has become an annual tradition, California – that fabled workers’ paradise on earth – has enacted a slew of new laws that, come January, may keep even the most hearty HR professionals up at night.
As we reported earlier this year (here), the California Chamber of Commerce initially identified 11 “Job Killer Bills” that were introduced early in the legislative session, but…
Employers Owe No Duty Of Care To Prevent The Spread Of COVID To Employees’ Household Members
Kuciemba v. Victory Woodworks, Inc., 14 Cal. 5th 993 (2023); 74 F.4th 1039 (9th Cir. 2023)
The California Supreme Court unanimously ruled that employers are not liable to nonemployees who contract COVID-19 from employee household members who bring the virus home from their workplace, because “[a]n employer does not owe a duty of care under California law to prevent the spread of COVID-19 to…
Court Affirms $7.1 Million Whistleblower Verdict
Zirpel v. Alki David Prods., Inc., 93 Cal. App. 5th 563 (2023)
Karl Zirpel worked as the vice president of operations for Alki David Productions (“ADP”) before the principal of ADP, Alki David, fired him for allegedly disclosing information that Zirpel reasonably believed evidenced a violation of safety standards and for disclosing information about ADP’s working conditions. The jury returned a special verdict…
Disability Leave Is Not “Compensation” Under California Workers’ Compensation Law
California Dep’t of Corr. & Rehab. v. WCAB, 2023 WL 5198517 (Cal. Ct. App. 2023)
Under the Workers’ Compensation Act, if a worker is injured because of the employer’s serious and willful misconduct, the “compensation” the worker is entitled to receive increases by one half. The statute defining “compensation” limits the term to benefits or payments provided by Division 4 of the Labor Code. …