Legal News and Updates
From Illegal Conduct to Protected Activity: Cannabis Users Acquire Protected Status Under FEHA in 2024
Beginning January 1, 2024, employees who recreationally use cannabis (marijuana) outside of the workplace will be legally protected in doing so, and cannot be subject to employment actions merely because of their off-duty use of the drug. The new law, Assembly Bill...
Halloween costumes in the workplace (and how to avoid a haunting HR nightmare)
Halloween provides employers a great opportunity to boost morale and camaraderie in the workplace. If orchestrated correctly, employers and employees will have the opportunity to bond while participating in Halloween festivities. But employers must be thoughtful about...
COVID is not going away and neither is SPSL (and other COVID-19 related legislative developments)
As many employers know, California Supplemental Paid Sick Leave (SPSL) for COVID-19 was set to expire on September 30, 2022. However, on September 29, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill No. 152 (AB 152), extending SPSL through December 31, 2022. AB 152 was an...
Fashion forward: The NLRB makes it more difficult for employers to restrict union insignia on uniforms
On August 29, 2022, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued a 3-2 split decision in Tesla Inc., holding that any attempts by an employer to restrict an employee’s display of union insignia will be found presumptively unlawful, absent “special circumstances”...
What Restaurant Employers Need to Know about the FAST Recovery Act
On September 5, 2022, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 257 into law, known as the FAST Food Recovery Accountability and Standards Recovery Act or FAST Recovery Act (the “Act”). The Act provides for the creation of the Fast Food Council, which is a separate council...
Trucking companies pump the brakes on independent contractor classifications after SCOTUS denies review
On June 30, the United States Supreme court announced that it would not hear the California Trucking Associations’ (CTA) petition for a hearing on whether California’s Assembly Bill 5 (AB 5) independent contractor classification law applied to motor carriers. On...
Mandated Employers’ Registration Deadline for CalSavers Retirement Savings Program is Around the Corner
The CalSavers Retirement Savings Program is California’s new retirement savings program that will offer eligible employees in California the opportunity to save for retirement through automatic payroll contributions facilitated from their workplace. The employer...
United States Supreme Court Chips Away at PAGA in New Favorable Decision for Employers
On June 15, 2022, the United States Supreme Court issued its long-anticipated decision on Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana. California employers waited for the highest court’s ruling with bated breath for potential refuge from the avalanche of PAGA actions in...
Extra Pay for a Missed Meal Break: Penalty or Wage? The California Supreme Court Weighs In
By now California employers know that meal and rest break rules are a big deal. And, like most other areas of wage and hour law, a small oversight can be very costly. The stakes are now higher in light of the California Supreme Court’s recent unfavorable ruling in...
Remote-Control: Wage and Hour Pitfalls of Having Offsite Workers
It’s a whole new world for employers now that we are into our third year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Employees have become accustomed to working remotely and do not necessarily want to return to the office, even with the availability of vaccinations and the lift of...