Starting on January 1, 2021, the California Family Rights Act will cover more employees and for more for reasons than ever before! You can find the text of the new law, SB 1383 here. Who is Covered by the Current Law? Under the current law, employers with fewer than 50 employees within a 75-mile radius were not required to provide family or medical leave to their employees. Likewise, employers with fewer than 30 employees within a 75-mile radius were not required to provide baby-bonding leave under the New Parent Leave Act. The employer size requirements left many employees without any jo ..read more

“We’re gratified that the Court of Appeal recognized the power of our evidence that Kaiser failed to provide its members sufficient resources for adequate mental health care, and optimistic that we will be certified on remand so we can help provide some real relief to their members.  These times especially highlight the importance of mental health care.” – Lead Counsel Jonathan Siegel On July 13, 2020, the California Court of Appeal, First Appellate District allowed patients with severe mental illness to pursue a class action against Kaiser Foundation Health Plan for underfunding mental h ..read more

The EEOC has provided good news for workers who are at high-risk for COVID-19.  High-risk employees are entitled to reasonable accommodations in the workplace during the COVID-19 pandemic! High-risk employees include any employees over 65 years of age. High-risk employees also include employees who have conditions the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has found make them at high-risk for COVID-19. CDC website ..read more

General Eligibility Requirements For Unemployment Benefits As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many employers are being forced to lay off, furlough, and/or reduce employee hours as a result of slow or nonexistent business. If you find yourself out of work, or working a reduced work schedule through no fault of your own, you may be entitled to unemployment insurance (UI) benefits and should file a claim with the California Employment Development Department (EDD) https://edd.ca.gov/ Benefits range from $40 to $450 per week depending on your earnings history within the base period, an ..read more

Last week, the United States legislature passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This new law provides some much needed relief for workers who are out of work because they or their family members have contracted COVID-19, or because they do not have child care due to school and daycare closures. Below is a summary of what rights you may have under the new law. What does the new law provide? 10 Paid Sick Days for full-time workers ..read more

We know many employees are facing uncertainty about their jobs in light of the current pandemic. You may have questions about what you can do if you are sick, or if you have been laid off due to cuts that have been made as a result of COVID-19 /Coronavirus. Many government agencies have put out guidance on how employees can protect themselves and benefits they may be entitled to if they are out of work due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Below we have summarized some resources that we hope will be helpful. Sick with or Exposed to COVID-19 In California, the California Family Rights Act (“CFRA”) prov ..read more

Just ahead of the bill-signing deadline in October, Governor Newsom signed several worker-friendly bills including AB 51, AB 9, SB 142, and AB 749. When an employment situation sours and an employee pursues his rights, usually at some point there is talk of settlement.  Almost routinely, employers include a no-rehire provision in any settlement agreement which prohibits the former employee from seeking reemployment with the employer. While this may not seem like a big deal if you work for a small company and have no intention of seeking reemployment with the same people who wronged you in the ..read more

In June 2017, San Francisco enacted a groundbreaking ordinance that requires employers to provide lactating employees with reasonable breaks and a safe, clean space to pump breast milk. The ordinance acknowledged the health benefits and importance of breast feeding to both children and lactating mothers. The ordinance also prohibited employers from retaliating against women who attempted to exercise their lactation rights and provided enforcement procedures. However, the ordinance only applied to employees who worked in San Francisco. Although California has had basic “lactation accommodation ..read more

As employers across the country reckon with the impacts of the #MeToo movement, the California legislature and Governor Newsom took decisive action to extend the statute of limitations on certain workplace claims, acknowledging that those who have been targeted by discrimination, harassment, and retaliation do not always come forward immediately. The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”) prohibits discrimination, harassment, and retaliation against California employees on a variety of bases. The FEHA provides some of the best employment protections in the country, and has been ex ..read more

For years, the battle over arbitration clauses and agreements has raged on in courts and legislatures throughout the country. The latest development in arbitration in employment in California came on Thursday in California when Governor Newsom signed AB 51. The governor’s approval of AB 51 is a victory employees throughout California- it effectively prohibits employers from forcing employees into mandatory arbitration agreements starting January 1, 2020. It is common practice throughout California to have an employee sign an arbitration agreement at the time she is hired. These agreements are ..read more