Last year was a busy legislative year in California. The #MeToo and #TimesUp movements in particular spawned a host of new employment laws that took effect on January 1st. If you haven’t done so already, you should review your employee handbook and personnel policies to make sure that you are in compliance with these new laws. SB… Read More
Posts Categorized In: Hiring, Discipline & Termination
Transparent Separation: A More Humane Way to Terminate?
I came across an interesting article today in the Harvard Business Review about employee terminations. The author, who is a digital media executive and Adjunct Professor of Management at Columbia University, argues that “transparent separation” is a more humane approach to employee termination that is “highly underused given [its] low risk and great benefits.” So… Read More
Governor Brown Signs AB 2282 Clarifying California’s Fair Pay Act
On July 18, 2018, California Governor Jerry Brown signed AB 2282. This new law, which goes into effect on January 1, 2019, clarifies employees’ rights, and employers’ obligations, under the state’s existing “Fair Pay Act.” Under California’s existing Fair Pay Act, California employers were (and still are) prohibited from asking about, or relying on, an applicant’s… Read More
And the Winner for Worst Boss is…the Absentee Leader!
A recent article by Marcel Schwantes in Inc. Magazine summarizes new research on the key traits of bad bosses. Guess what key trait makes for the worst type of boss? Absentee Leadership Absentee leadership is harder to detect and does not fall into one of the classic leadership patterns considered “bad” for the workplace: the bully,… Read More
California Employers Must Walk ICE Tightrope
As we predicted in a recent blog post which you can find here, federal ICE agents are targeting California employers and making California workplaces battle zones for federal immigration raids. According to today’s story in the New York Times, employers throughout California are reporting more surprise ICE audits. This comes a week after ICE raids occurred… Read More
Are New Laws Banning Employers From Asking About Salary History Backfiring?
As I blogged about here and here, California and San Francisco recently enacted new laws prohibiting employers from asking applicants about their prior “salary history.” California currently joins Delaware and New York City as the only other jurisdictions that currently prohibit all employers from asking about salary history during the employment process. (Note: Several other… Read More
The Workplace Impact of Legal Marijuana in California
Many Californians celebrated the arrival of 2018 standing for hours in long lines at their local pot dispensary. That’s because the 2016 law legalizing recreational marijuana in California — known as Proposition 64 or the Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA) — officially became effective on January 1, 2018. On that date, residents of municipalities… Read More
California Court Makes it Easier for Overweight Employees to Sue Their Employers
California law has not (yet) recognized weight as a protected category along with race, gender, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, medical condition, and many others. However, more than 25 years ago, the California Supreme Court held that an overweight employee could qualify as a “disabled” under California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) — and,… Read More
Governor Signs AB 1008 and Brings “Ban the Box” to Private Employers
Existing California law prohibits public employers (e.g., the State of California, cities, government agencies, public universities) from asking an applicant to disclose his/her prior conviction history until the applicant receives a qualified offer of employment. This law is referred to as “ban the box” because it prohibits employers from asking if the applicant has ever… Read More
Governor Signs AB 168 Prohibiting Employers From Considering Salary History When Hiring
On October 12, 2017, California Governor Jerry Brown signed AB 168. This new law, which becomes effective on January 1, 2018, will prohibit all employers in California from asking about, or relying on, an applicant’s prior salary history when deciding whether to offer a job and how much to pay. AB 168 will supplement California’s… Read More
