Yesterday, the California Chamber of Commerce published its annual comprehensive list of new employment laws that will impact California businesses on January 1, 2014 (if not earlier). I’ve written about many of these new laws here in this blog as they were passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor. However, the Chamber of… Read More
HR & Employment Law Blog
CA Supreme Court Reverses Prior Decision in Sonic Calabasas v. Moreno
On October 17, 2013, the CA Supreme Court overturned its February 2011 decision in Sonic Calabasas v. Moreno (“Sonic I”). Unfortunately, however, the dense, scholarly, 73-page opinion — known as Sonic Calabasas v. Moreno II (“Sonic II”) — gives little clarity to California employers trying to craft defensible, enforceable arbitration agreements. Background In the original Sonic… Read More
Labor Commissioner Issues $481,813 Citation Against Alameda Restaurant
This should get the attention of every entrepreneur and small business owner in California — Last week, the California Labor Commissioner Julie Su issued citations totaling $481,813 against the owners of Toomie’s Thai Cuisine in Alameda. The citations consisted mostly of civil fines, penalties, and wages owed to 13 employees for minimum wage, overtime, and… Read More
The Affordable Care Act is Good for Small Business
In the October 14, 2013 edition of The New Yorker, author James Surowiecki argues that the Affordable Care Act, which is often referred to as “Obamacare,” will have “enormous” benefits for entrepreneurs and small businesses. You can find the article here. One benefit, according to Mr. Surowiecki, is that employees will no longer face “job… Read More
Governor Brown Signs More Employment-Related Bills
Yesterday, Governor Brown signed several more bills that further expand employee rights in California: AB 218 — Existing California law prohibits both public and private employers from asking an applicant to disclose, either verbally or in writing, any information about a prior arrest or detention that did not result in a conviction. This new law,… Read More
SF Supervisors Pass “Family Friendly Workplace Ordinance”
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors today passed a “Family Friendly Workplace Ordinance.” This new ordinance, which would apply to San Francisco businesses with 20 or more employees, grants employees with 6 or more months’ of employment who work at least 8 hours a week the right to request flexible work schedules or other workplace changes… Read More
Governor Brown Signs Domestic Worker Bill of Rights (AB 241)
Governor Jerry Brown recently signed AB 241, also known as the “Domestic Worker Bill of Rights.” Under this new law, California workers in many household occupations will be entitled to overtime pay (at the rate of 1.5 times their regular rate of pay) for all hours worked in excess of 9 hours per day or… Read More
Governor Brown Signs AB 10 Raising California Minimum Wage
Yesterday, California Governor Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 10 (AB 10) which raises the state’s minimum wage to $9.00/hour on July 1, 2014 and then to $10.00/hour on January 1, 2016. Unless some other state raises its minimum wage in the interim, the Governor’s signing of AB 10 gives California the highest state minimum wage… Read More
Governor Brown Signs SB 770 Expanding Family Disability Insurance Benefits
Yesterday, California Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 770 which expands California’s temporary family disability insurance program. Under the new law, employees who take time off to care for a seriously ill sibling, parent-in-law, grandparent, or grandchild are also eligible for up to 6 weeks of family disability leave benefits. The prior law granted those benefits… Read More
ROBS — How to Convert a 401(k) Into Startup Funding
Entrepreneurs often ask me questions about startup funding — how and where they go about finding all the money they need to launch their ventures. These questions always lead to a conversation about friends-and-family, angel investors, seed funding firms (or “incubators”), venture capital firms, commercial banks, the SBA, and other government grants and funds. During… Read More
