Last week, the California Supreme Court issued a highly anticipated decision in Estrada v. Royalty Carpet Mills, Inc., finding that trial courts cannot strike claims under the Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (PAGA) due to concerns about their “manageability.” Since PAGA was enacted twenty years ago, there has been a massive surge in lawsuits and an infinitely growing threat of significant penalties and attorneys’ fees. While employers were hoping that this decision would give them a tool to curtail PAGA’s harm, unfortunately, it was yet another blow for employers. Procedural History The ..read more

On January 9, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor issued its final rule regarding the classification of independent contractors versus employees, which becomes effective March 11, 2024. Although California employers are bound to the more restrictive “ABC Test” (that generally leads to findings that most workers are employees and not independent contractors), employers that are bound by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, whether by virtue of conducting business in a state that follows the FLSA or some other reason (e.g., federal contractors), should take note of the new federal rule, which de ..read more

As California employers rightfully reflect on their accomplishments from 2023, it is time to look ahead to 2024 and make sure your company’s New Year’s Resolutions include the following: Employee Handbook/Policy Changes 2024 Paid Sick Leave Changes: As of January 1, 2024, most employers are required to provide 5 days/40 hours of paid sick leave under California law, but this amount, and rollover accruals from year to year, can be even greater if your company is subject to a local sick leave ordinance. See our blog post here. Reproductive Loss Leave: Employers are now required to provide unpa ..read more

Background for Employers In 2018, the California Legislature enacted the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA,” Civil Code section 1798.100, et seq.) As originally enacted, the CCPA created privacy rights for “consumers” – specifically regarding the personal information that businesses collect about them. Notably, “consumers” is broadly defined under the CCPA as a natural person who resides in California, but California employers were largely spared from obligations under the original incarnation of the CCPA, other than providing notice of rights under statute. In 2020, by voter initiative ..read more

No later than Valentine’s Day 2024, California employers will be required to send “candy grams” to former and existing employees with unenforceable non-competes informing them that those provisions are void. Complicating this new legal requirement is an expanded definition of what constitutes an unenforceable non-compete and the creation of a new legal claim that can be brought against an employer who pursues enforcement of an invalid non-compete. California has long prohibited most non-compete agreements. Since 1941, California law has rendered them invalid except under very limited circumsta ..read more

On October 26, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or the Board) issued a new rule addressing how the Board will assess joint employer status under the National Labor Relations Act. In short, the new rule lowers the bar significantly for finding two entities to be joint employers and raises heightened concerns about the careful use of contractors and potentially franchisor-franchisee relationships. Here are some key takeaways: The prior rule focused on whether a putative joint employer’s control over employment matters is direct and immediate. However, the new rule focuses on wheth ..read more

On October 4, 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 616 and expanded California’s sick leave law, the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014. As a result, California employers must be prepared to comply by January 1, 2024, notably by increasing the amount of paid sick leave provided to employees. Paid Sick Leave Under Current Law All California employers, regardless of size, are required to provide employees with 24 hours or three days of paid sick leave per year. The law applies to employees that have worked in California for 30 or more days in a year and have completed 90 ..read more

Last week, the California Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Adolph v. Uber Technologies, Inc. to determine the effect of arbitration agreements on claims for penalties brought by employees under the Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (PAGA). Unfortunately, this ruling does not offer employers one clear-cut way to deal with these disputes. For many years in California, employers have understood that, although employees can waive their right to bring class actions via an arbitration agreement, they could not waive their right to bring a PAGA action, and, as a result, PAGA clai ..read more

On January 13, 2023, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced an initiative to extend more protection against deportation for undocumented immigrants who report labor rights violations by employers. These protections are meant to allow undocumented workers to speak out about labor violations without fear of retribution. With this enhanced initiative, DHS provides an improved legal process for whistleblowing undocumented immigrants to defer removal (deportation) from the United States for two years and obtain a temporary work permit. Although DHS has explained that this policy is to ..read more

Non-profits face unique HR legal challenges. While counter-intuitive, these businesses are often more vulnerable to legal disputes than for-profit companies. This session will focus exclusively on what these agencies must do to ensure legal compliance and minimize costly litigation: Why unions are focusing so much attention on non-profits and what you can do right now to avoid becoming a target Special federal and state wage-hour issues Unique issues that arise when negotiating CEO employment and compensation agreements Managing a remote workforce to ensure legal compliance How to effectively ..read more