California Employment Law Update

Category Archives: Client Alerts

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Trial Court Properly Denied Massage Parlor’s Request For Waiver Of Bond In Wage/Hour Matter

Li v. Department of Indust. Relations, 2020 WL 4814112 (Cal. Ct. App. 2020) Fushan Li, the owner of four massage parlors in Lawndale, received three citations from the Labor Commissioner for violations of the state’s wage and hour laws. Citations ordering Li to pay a total of $198,576 in unpaid wages and liquidated damages were … Continue Reading

California Becomes a “Sanctuary State,” Restricts Employer Cooperation With Federal Immigration Authorities

On Thursday, October 5th, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law nearly a dozen new immigration-related bills, including AB 450, which prohibits employers from cooperating with federal immigration authorities in the absence of a judicial warrant or court order.  Among other things, the new law: Prohibits employers from voluntarily consenting to an immigration enforcement agent’s … Continue Reading

It’s Time to Think About Arbitration Agreements Again Following Recent $15 Million+ Employee Verdicts

Jury panels in the Los Angeles Superior Court (which is often referred to as “The Bank” by the plaintiffs’ bar) have recently delivered multimillion-dollar verdicts to former-employee plaintiffs.  Many employers doing business in California already have insulated themselves from such disasters by adopting comprehensive arbitration regimes, which would require that such cases be heard by a retired … Continue Reading

Prompt Final Pay Provisions Of California Labor Code Apply To Retiring Employees

McLean v. State of Cal., 2016 WL 4395672 (Cal. S. Ct. 2016) Janis McLean, a retired deputy attorney general, filed suit against the State of California on behalf of herself and a class of former state employees who, having resigned or retired, did not receive their final wages within the time period set forth in … Continue Reading

California Employees May Soon Be Entitled to Paid Sick Leave

California Governor Jerry Brown has until September 30th to sign or veto A.B. 1522, a recently passed bill that would require businesses employing at least one person in California to provide employees with paid sick leave and to comply with new recordkeeping and informational requirements. If signed by the governor, the bill will become effective … Continue Reading

UPDATE: California Labor Commissioner Amends Recently-Issued Guidance Regarding Wage Theft Prevention Act

Last week, we reported that the California Labor Commissioner issued a template “Notice to Employee” as required by the Wage Theft Prevention Act of 2011 (the “Act”), which went into effect January 1. The Act requires employers to furnish specified wage information to certain non-exempt employees at the time of their hire. As we also … Continue Reading

Client Alert: Ninth Circuit Reversed in Sexting Privacy Decision

Today, in a decision authored by Justice Anthony Kennedy, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously overturned a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in a case involving an employee’s assertion that a government employer had violated the Fourth Amendment by unreasonably obtaining and reviewing personal text messages sent and received on … Continue Reading

California Supreme Court Expands Judicial Review of Employment Arbitration Awards

A recent decision by the California Supreme Court could have resounding implications for the enforceability of arbitration awards - a matter of great concern in employment law given the prevalence of arbitration agreements governing employment relationships - and opens the door for employees to petition the courts to compel arbitrators to decide the merits of their statutory claims. … Continue Reading

D.C. Circuit Reviews NLRB’s Controversial Register Guard E-Mail Solicitation Decision

As we reported previously, in December 2007 the National Labor Relations Board issued a decision relating to company e-mail policies in The Guard Publishing Company, d/b/a The Register-Guard, 351 NLRB No. 70 (2007), holding that an employer (i) may restrict the use of its computer systems to business related uses only, and (ii) could distinguish … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Rules Against the City of New Haven in Highly Publicized Reverse Discrimination Case: What Does Ricci vs. DeStefano Mean For Employers?

Yesterday, in a highly anticipated 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Ricci v. DeStefano that the City of New Haven engaged in unlawful intentional race discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”) when it discarded a firefighter promotional test because of the racial makeup of … Continue Reading

U.S. Supreme Court Holds Plaintiffs in Age Discrimination Suits to Higher Standard

In an important ruling that increases the burden on plaintiffs in cases under the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the United States Supreme Court held on June 18, 2009 that plaintiffs in age discrimination cases always bear the burden of proving that an adverse employment action would not have been taken against them … Continue Reading

Recent Circuit Decisions and EEOC Best Practices Highlight Caregiver Discrimination Issues

Over the last few years, caregiver discrimination has become an emerging issue in employment law. A pair of recent court decisions and the potential impact of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009, as well as signals from the Obama Administration, in particular the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, suggest that the issue of discrimination because … Continue Reading

California Court of Appeal Reverses $105m Judgment In Starbucks Case and Clarifies Permissible Tip-Allocation Practices

The California Court of Appeal has issued an important decision that has significant implications for California employers that have tip-sharing arrangements for their employees. In Chau v. Starbucks Corp., 2009 WL 1522708 (Cal. Ct. App. Jun. 2, 2009), the court held that an employer can allow employees who have both supervisory and customer service duties … Continue Reading

Don’t Terminate That 401(k) or 403(b) Safe Harbor Plan Just Yet: IRS Proposes New Rules Allowing Employers Experiencing Substantial Business Hardship To Reduce Non-elective Contributions Mid-Year

Introduction On May 18, 2009, the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) issued new proposed regulations that allow plan sponsors of Internal Revenue Code (“Code”) Section 401(k) or 403(b) safe harbor plans to reduce or suspend non-elective contributions mid-year if they are experiencing a “substantial business hardship.” Prior to the proposed regulations, a plan sponsor could … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Rejects Retroactive Application of Pregnancy Discrimination Act

In a 7-2 decision, the United States Supreme Court has held that AT&T did not violate the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (“PDA”) when it based its calculation of employees’ pensions in part on a pre- PDA accrual rule that treated pregnancy leave less favorably than other forms of disability leave. AT&T Corp v. Hulteen, No. 07-543 (May … Continue Reading

Tip of the Month: Federal Contractors’ Obligations to Veterans

The Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 (“VEVRAA”) creates a variety of affirmative action obligations for employers with federal government contracts. The Act was amended in 2002 by the Jobs for Veterans Act (“JVA”). In May 2008, the Department of Labor finalized rules that implement changes to these obligations made by the JVA for employers … Continue Reading

Swine Flu: Is Your Workplace Prepared?

As of this writing, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed 109 cases of the H1N1 virus, commonly known as swine flu, in the United States. The World Health Organization has confirmed 331 cases of swine flu worldwide and has raised the pandemic threat level to Phase 5 on its six-step scale (Phase … Continue Reading

President Obama Announces Proposed Nominees to Fill Two Vacancies on the National Labor Relations Board

On April 24, 2009, President Obama announced his intention to nominate Craig Becker and Mark Gaston Pearce to fill two of the three vacant positions on National Labor Relations Board. The NLRB is comprised of five members appointed by the President who are subject to approval by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee … Continue Reading

Retroactive Overtime for Misclassified Salaried Employees: The DOL Supports the Fluctuating Workweek’s Half-Time Methodology

The U.S. Department of Labor’s (the “DOL”) Wage and Hour Division recently issued a Wage and Hour Opinion Letter, FLSA 2009-3, addressing how a company can compute overtime payments retroactively for salaried employees it had mistakenly classified as exempt (not overtime-eligible) under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA” or the “Act”). The DOL reiterated its … Continue Reading

Tip of the Month: Best Practices for Compensation Audits

Recent changes in the legal and economic landscape have significantly heightened the risk that employers’ compensation systems will come under attack. Congress has passed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act (“Ledbetter”), which effectively waives the statute of limitations for compensation discrimination claims under the majority of federal employment statutes. The law increases a plaintiff’s ability … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Endorses Union-Negotiated Arbitration of Discrimination Claims

Proskauer Prevails As The Court Holds That Collectively Bargained Agreements for The Arbitration of Statutory Discrimination Claims are Enforceable On April 1, 2009, the United States Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, ruled in favor of Proskauer Rose’s client 14 Penn Plaza LLC, holding that a collective bargaining agreement (“CBA”) that clearly and unmistakably requires … Continue Reading
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