California - General

In California, signatures are being gathered in support of the “Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Initiative.” The initiative is likely to qualify for the November 2016 ballot and, if passed by the voters, could legalize the recreational use of marijuana in California. In this podcast

There have been a few notable developments this week in the employment law world. Here's the roundup: Service Advisor Overtime Exemption.

After enduring years of drought, California employers find themselves in a phenomenon of equal concern: a cruel summer. In the span of one month, two new local paid sick leave laws were signed and amendments to two existing local measures were approved. On May 10, 2016, Santa Monica amended its law,

Like its neighbor Santa Monica and other major California cities including San Francisco and Oakland, the City of Los Angeles approved its own sick leave entitlement ordinance on June 2, 2016. The Los Angeles Ordinance (“Ordinance”) will provide employees working in the City of Los Angeles with the

The Los Angeles City Council has passed a paid sick leave ordinance, which is slated to go into effect July 1, 2016 in conjunction with the previously passed minimum wage ordinance. The sick leave ordinance will require employers in the City of Los Angeles to provide paid sick leave benefits that ex

In the California legislative process, June 3, 2016 was the last day for each house to pass bills introduced in that house. On March 22, 2016, we reported on notable employment-related bills that had been introduced. Here is an update on the bills that failed passage in their house of origination, a

On Tuesday, San Diego's voters overwhelmingly voted in favor of a ballot measure to pass Proposition I, which increases the minimum wage for workers in the City of San Diego and mandates that these employees be provided with paid sick leave benefits that exceed the benefits already mandated by Calif

The California legislature has reached the midpoint of its 2016 legislative session. The Governor has signed four bills of significance to California private sector employers. In addition, a few dozen workplace-related bills have moved beyond their initial policy committees, and many have passed the

Executive Summary: On April 19, 2016, the Los Angeles City Council voted overwhelmingly in favor of a proposed ordinance that would permit Los Angeles workers to earn at least six paid sick leave days annually. That is double the mandatory minimum under California's state-wide paid sick leave law.

California has many requirements for the content of an employee wage statement, including this year’s new requirements for employees paid by a piece rate. Employees paid by piece rates must be separately compensated for rest and recovery periods and, where the employee does not earn at least minimum

Within the last few weeks, California has raised its minimum wage and expanded its paid family leave rights. Another bill expanding employee rights that is pending in the State Legislature is SB 878. This bill is designed to require California grocery, retail, and restaurant employers to provide emp

Today, the California Supreme Court provided guidance that had been requested by the Ninth Circuit regarding California’s suitable seating requirements in two different cases -- Kilby v. CVS Pharmacy and Henderson v. JPMorgan Chase Bank (both pending before the Ninth Circuit). The Ninth Circuit cert

Early this week we reported on a "deal" reached between labor unions, certain democratic lawmakers, and the California Governor to increase California's minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2022. Yesterday, California's Assembly and Senate both voted to approve the bill, largely along partisan lines. All

Today, the California Supreme Court issued its opinion in Baltazar v. Forever 21, Inc., rejecting an employee’s argument that her arbitration agreement with her employer was unconscionable and unenforceable simply because it permitted the parties to seek a temporary restraining order or preliminary

Curious what the California Legislature is up to this legislative session? As is the case every year, there are several employment-related bills that have been proposed and are pending. As is also the case virtually every year, most of the proposed bills are bad for employers.

Agricultural workers have long been exempted from California’s traditional overtime laws. Instead farm workers have been subject to industry-specific overtime rules that allow companies to employ them for longer periods of time before overtime rates kick in. Under current law, farmworkers in Califor

In January, Governor Edmund G. Brown submitted his 2016-17 budget to the California Legislature. The governor’s budget includes a proposal that, if approved, would have a resounding impact on civil actions filed by California employees under the Private Attorney General Act (PAGA). Since the PAGA wa

The pace of employment legislative activity in Sacramento picked up as February drew to a close. The following highlights some of the more notable issues under consideration in the Golden State.

On January 7, 2016, Governor Brown’s office submitted a 22-page Budget Change Proposal for 2016-2017 (http://web1a.esd.dof.ca.gov/Documents/bcp/1617/FY1617_ORG7350_BCP474.pdf) in an effort to “stabilize and improve the handling of Private Attorneys General Act cases.”