On October 12, 2025, Governor Gavin Newsom signed S.B. 294, the “Workplace Know Your Rights Act” (the “Act”).  In response to recent immigration enforcement actions, the Act aims to educate workers on their civil rights in the workplace. 

The Act sets forth two requirements. 

First, it requires California employers to provide a stand-alone written notice to new hires and current employees advising them of

Remember when the workday ended at 5:00 pm?

In today’s always-on world, the “infinite workday” has quietly taken over—creeping into dinners, weekends, and even that quaint concept known as a “vacation.”  With smartphones in every pocket and teams spread across multiple time zones, work now follows us everywhere.  Microsoft’s 2025 Work Trend Index confirms what many leaders already sense: work is no longer confined by

The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) has released updated guidance clarifying how the state’s latest statutory enactments will impact employers’ paid sick leave obligations.  Specifically, as we reported here, Assembly Bill (AB) 2499 and Senate Bill (SB) 1105 expand the permissible reasons for which employees can use paid sick leave.

The updated FAQs now explain that, in addition to existing uses of paid

A recent unpublished California Court of Appeal decision, Hegemier v. A Better Life Recovery LLC, Cal. Ct. App., 4th Dist., No. G061892, demonstrates the potential consequence of drafting an arbitration agreement without foreseeing every way a future plaintiff might attempt to pick it apart. 

Almost two years ago, in Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana, 596 U.S. 639 (2022),the United States Supreme

In 2018, California’s statewide Fair Chance Act (“FCA”) went into effect, imposing limitations on employers’ consideration of applicants’ criminal records and requiring a fair chance process before a candidate’s offer was revoked.  A year earlier, the City of Los Angeles had enacted its own Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring, which imposed similar obligations on employers within the boundaries of the City.  Now, Los Angeles County

With the sweeping presence of technology today, the boundary between work life and home life has become increasingly blurred. A new bill recently introduced to the California legislature seeks to change that by protecting employees’ “right to disconnect.”   

Assembly Bill 2751, introduced by Assemblyman Matt Haney (D-San Francisco), proposes to add a Section 1198.2 to the Labor Code that would effectively prevent employers from contacting employees

For the second year in a row, California has avoided being “the worst in the nation,” but still managed to secure the unenviable third position on the American Tort Reform Foundation’s (“ATRF”) Annual Judicial Hellholes List.

The ATRF characterizes California as the “plaintiffs’ bar’s laboratory for finding new ways to expand liability,” highlighting several key judicial and legislative trends contributing to each Californian paying an

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:

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

Mattson Tech., Inc. v. Applied Materials, Inc., 2023 WL 7180167 (Cal. Ct. App. 2023)

Canfeng Lai worked for many years at Applied Materials before submitting his resignation to begin a new job at Mattson Technology (one of Applied’s competitors). First, however, Lai allegedly emailed himself a number of files containing Applied’s trade secrets. In response, Applied sued both Lai and Mattson for violating the