Law Alerts
Employers Prohibited From Relying On Salary History in Making Hiring Decisions.
On Thursday, October 12, 2017, the Governor signed Assembly Bill 168 (“AB 168”) into law, which takes effect on January 1, 2018. AB 168 applies to all employers and specifically prohibits employers from relying on the salary history information of an applicant for employment as a factor in determining whether or not to make a […]
JULY 1, 2017: Your Minimum Wage Employees May Be Due For An Increase
Whether your minimum wage employees are due for an increase in pay largely depends on where your business is located, how many employees you have, and where your employees actually perform their work. Apart from the federal and California minimum wage laws, a number of cities and counties throughout California have promulgated their own special […]
Is Your Restroom Designated as “All-Gender?”
Effective March 1, 2017, California businesses as well as any establishment open to the public must designate existing single-user restroom facilities as “All-gender.” The new law, which adds Section 118600 to the California Health and Safety Code, provides that “All single-user toilet facilities in any business establishment, place of public accommodation, or state or local […]
Texas Judge Blocks Obama Overtime Rule
We have some good news (at least for now) for employers. A federal judge in Texas has issued a nationwide preliminary injunction against the Obama administration’s “final overtime rule” (the “Rule”). This is the Rule that raises the salary test for Administrative, Executive, and Professional employees to qualify for exemption from overtime pay under federal […]
2017 New Bill Alert, November 2016
Article by: Brian E. Ewing, Esq. This year, it appears that the California Legislature focused less on passing bills that restrict an employer’s ability to manage its workforce compared to previous years. Nonetheless, there are a few bills passed this year that are worth noting. The following new laws take effect January 1, 2017 unless […]
Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016
Congress recently passed the “Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016.” This law allows employers who are the victim of theft of their trade secrets by employees to file a civil lawsuit in federal court, as well as in state court. The law is similar to, but not identical to, state trade secret protections.
The City of Los Angeles Passes Generous Paid Sick Leave Ordinance
Effective July 1, 2016 Not content with the state’s paid sick leave law, the City of Los Angeles has now passed its own generous paid sick leave ordinance, which mirrors the state law in many respects, but also doubles the amount of paid sick time employers must offer to employees within the city. Sick time […]
2016 DOL – Final Overtime Rule
The federal government has published its long-awaited changes to the regulations (the “Final Rule”) that set employee overtime exemptions for executive, administrative, and professional employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). California’s overtime rules are typically more generous to employees than those under the FLSA, so California employers typically focus on those rules. However, […]
The Importance of Reviewing Employees’ Wages
By Brian Ewing, Esq. Minimum Wage Conducting periodic reviews of the wages you pay to your employees is important, and even more so this year. Initially, you will want to make sure that all of your employees’ pay rates are at or above the correct state and local minimum wage. The California minimum wage is […]
New regulations require updates to discrimination policies and harassment training
By: Brian E. Ewing, Esq. Click here to download the revised Employee Relations Policy in PDF format The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (“DFEH”), which enforces the state’s anti-discrimination laws, has issued new regulations that take effect April 1, 2016. The updated regulations provide new details about implementing several aspects of the state laws […]