In September 2020, Governor Newsom signed AB 1867 into law, which created Supplemental Paid Sick Leave (“SPSL”) rights for millions of California employees who were not eligible for such leave under the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”). We blogged about AB 1867 here. Since AB 1867 expired on December 31, 2020, as did… Read More
HR & Employment Law Blog
Close Only Counts in Horseshoes and Hand Grenades – Not Meal Periods
In the most significant meal periods decision in almost ten years, the California Supreme Court on February 25, 2021 decided Donohue v. AMN Services, LLC. While the Court in Donohue made clear that as long as meal periods are provided, employers do not have to “police” employees and force them to take meal periods, the… Read More
How the New “American Rescue Plan Act” Impacts Employers and Employees
Now that President Biden has signed the American Rescue Plan Act (“ARPA”) into law, we’ve had the chance to review the massive legislation. And we’ve discovered some little-known provisions in the law that directly impact employers and employees. Here’s a quick summary of those provisions: Incentives for Employers to Offer Paid Sick Leave As we… Read More
Cal-OSHA Provides Additional Guidance for Employers Regarding COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards
On November 30, 2020, California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal-OSHA) adopted a set of COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards (“ETS”), which became effective immediately. The ETS require employers to take various actions to protect their workplaces from COVID-19. You can read our previous blog post about the ETS here. On December 1, 2020, Cal-OSHA… Read More
The 5 Key Ingredients of a Successful Team, According to Google
Back in 2012, Google (in classic Google fashion) sought to identify a formula for creating the most successful workplace team. They called this experiment “Project Aristotle,” named after the philosopher credited with the remarkable notion that “there exists a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.” In his Inc. article, which you… Read More
California Supreme Court Rules That Dynamex Applies Retroactively
California employers face even more liability now for misclassifying workers as “independent contractors.” That’s because the California Supreme Court recently ruled in Vasquez v. Jan-Pro Franchising, Inc. that the test for determining whether a worker qualifies as an employee or independent contractor – known as the “ABC Test” and announced in the Court’s 2018 decision… Read More
Better Together: Mentor Matchups as a Buffer for Employee Retention
As an employer, there is nothing more disheartening than finding the “perfect employee,” and then losing that employee and having to start the hiring process back at square one. Recently, Forbes contributor Robert Sher delved into this issue and put forth a solution: mentorship. By pairing new hires up with experienced colleagues – not just… Read More
How COVID-19 is Shaping the U.S. Workforce
A recent article by Howard Schneider and Jonnelle Marte, published by Reuters, takes a closer look at how the COVID-19 pandemic is changing the economy and workforce of the United States. Many of the changes we all assumed would be temporary have become indefinite or permanent, and that is having a noticeable impact. The authors… Read More
New Year, New Laws: Coming Soon to a Workplace Near You
The new year is right around the corner, and with it comes a host of new and amended laws for California employers. As we blogged about previously, numerous California employment laws changed in 2020 – COVID-19-related AB 685, AB 1867 and SB 1159, expansions to California’s Family Rights Act in SB 1383, new exemptions relating… Read More
Silent but Deadly? AB 1947 Packs a Punch for Retaliation Claims
With little public recognition in light of the ongoing pandemic-related legislation, Governor Newsom recently approved AB 1947 – legislation that will have significant impact on employers. AB 1947 amends two specific provisions of the Labor Code relating to employee retaliation claims – Section 98.7, which enables workers to file retaliation claims with the Labor Commissioner,… Read More
