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Might There Be an End in Sight to the Private Attorney General Act?

On November 28, 2018, a newly created association representing California-based employers called the California Business & Industrial Alliance filed a complaint for injunctive and declaratory relief against the California Attorney General seeking to enjoin the enforcement of the Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) and declare it unconstitutional. While PAGA took effect in 2004 – to […]

California Court of Appeal Finds Employee Non-Solicitation Agreement Unenforceable

Previously, agreements prohibiting former employees from soliciting a former employer’s employees were generally considered enforceable, so long as they had reasonable terms. Earlier this month, however, the California Court of Appeal issued a decision, AMN Healthcare v. Aya Healthcare Services Inc., calling into question the validity of any employee non-solicitation agreement. The Court in AMN […]

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California enacts sweeping legislation designed to address the #MeToo movement

Governor Jerry Brown signed into law four new bills addressing harassment and discrimination in the workplace. Senate Bill 826 mandates that public companies based in California have at least one woman on their board of directors by the end of 2019. That number increases in 2021 depending on the size of the board. Senate Bill […]

Struggling with California’s Applicant Salary History Law? (A Little) Help has Arrived.

When California’s prohibition on asking applicants about their salary history (AB 168) went into effect on January 1, 2018, many HR professionals struggled with the following question: “If I ask an applicant about salary requirements, and the question elicits information about the applicant’s salary history, have I violated the new law?”  It was a good […]

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Every Minute Counts: Supreme Court Rules Employers Cannot “Skim” Minutes

On Thursday, the California Supreme Court held the federal Fair Labor Standards Act de minimis rule, which limits suits over small increments of unpaid time upon a showing that the bits of time are administratively difficult to record, does not apply to California wage order claims. Limiting its holding to the facts of the case, […]

AM
Former Associate

California Legislature Takes A Strong Stance in Response to #Metoo Movement

The California legislature is looking to pass a host of bills aimed at decreasing sexual harassment in the workplace and increasing rights of victims of sexual harassment: SB 820 bans confidential settlement agreements in cases involving sexual assault, sexual harassment or sex discrimination. This bill would make any such confidential settlement agreement void as a […]

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California Construction Industry, Are They The Next Ripe Target For Private Attorney General Act Claims? Hint-The Answer Is Yes.

In January, California ushered in a new law designed to strengthen wage protections for employees who work under private construction contracts. The law makes all “direct contractors” potentially liable for wages incurred by an employee of any subcontractor-at any tier. The statute attempts to limit the remedies to those of unpaid wages, fringe or benefit […]

CJ

Court Embraces Worker-Friendly Test for Determining Independent Contractor Status Under California Wage Orders, Broadening Definition of “Employee”

On Monday, the California Supreme Court ruled in a unanimous decision to reject 30-year old precedent which focused the inquiry on the amount of control the company exercises over the worker, embracing a new test for determining whether a worker is properly classified as an independent contractor for wage order claims. In Dynamex v. Superior […]

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AM
Former Associate

Arbitration Agreement Contained in Employee Handbook and Signed During Pending Class Action Is Invalid

On April 20, 2018, the California Court of Appeal, in the case Nguyen v. Inter-Coast International Training, Inc., held that an arbitration agreement contained in an employee handbook was both procedurally and substantively unconscionable. In that case, after a wage and hour class action was filed and certified against the employer, the employer modified its […]

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California Supreme Court Deviates From Federal Regulations on Calculating Regular Rate of Pay on Flat Rate Bonuses

Earlier this week the California Supreme Court ruled that when calculating the regular rate of pay for flat rate bonuses an employer must divide the employee’s total pay (including the bonus) by the employee’s total non-overtime hours worked and multiply the result by 1.5 for each overtime hour worked. This diverges from the federal regulations […]

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