On March 7, 2011, the City & County of San Francisco begins its new Mobile Food Facilities Program (MFFP). The MFFP, which is administered by the San Francisco Department of Public Works (DPW), is designed to make it faster, easier, and far less expensive for operators of food trucks and other “mobile food facilities” to… Read More
Employment Arbitration Agreements After Sonic Calabasas v. Moreno
On February 24, 2011, a divided California Supreme Court ruled in Sonic Calabasas A, Inc. v. Moreno, S174475, that a worker who signs an otherwise valid pre-employment arbitration agreement does not give up his statutory right to seek administrative relief through Labor Commissioner hearings. In other words, even if that worker signed a mandatory arbitration… Read More
Recording Customers’ Zip Codes Violates California’s Song-Beverly Credit Card Act
On February 10, 2011, the California Supreme Court ruled in Pineda v. Williams-Sonoma Stores, Inc., S178241, that a customer’s ZIP code is “personal identification information” under California’s Song-Beverly Credit Card Act[1] of 1971. Therefore, retailers in California cannot ask a customer to provide a ZIP code at purchase without violating California law. The Court’s Ruling… Read More
Governor Signs SB 602 Requiring Safety Training for California “Food Handlers”
On September 25, 2010, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed SB 602, known as the “California Food Handler Card Law.” [i] This new law requires all “food handlers” in the State to have a food handler card on or before July 1, 2011. The law was designed to reduce the potential for foodborne illness by guaranteeing… Read More
CA Supreme Court Rules that Employees Cannot Sue for “Tip Pooling” Violations
On August 9, 2010, the California Supreme Court gave restaurant and other hospitality employers a victory in Lu v. Hawaiian Gardens, 50 Cal. 4th 592 (2010), by holding that California Labor Code Section 351 does not contain a private right to sue. Therefore, a tipped employee in California cannot sue his employer in court for… Read More
Federal Reserve Issues Final Gift Card Regulations
On March 23, 2010, the Federal Reserve Board of Governors issued their final regulations implementing the gift card provisions of the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (the “CARD Act”).[i] California hotels, restaurants, and other retailers, who are already complying with California’s gift card law[ii], will also have to comply with these… Read More