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California

Can we make flu shots mandatory?

03/20/2013
Q. Because this season’s flu outbreak was so severe, next fall we would like to require all our employees to get a flu vaccine. We hope this will cut down on employee absences during flu season. Would such a policy be lawful?

California Supreme Court: ‘Mixed-motive’ applies in FEHA cases

03/20/2013
The California Supreme Court has issued a long-awaited decision on whether the “mixed-motive” de­­fense applies to employment discrimination claims under the California Fair Em­­ployment and Housing Act (FEHA).

NLRB sets date for new Kaiser Permanente election

03/20/2013
Forty-five thousand Kaiser Permanente employees in California will start receiving new union ballots April 5 following a National Labor Relations Board ruling that a 2010 election was invalid.

On meal and break pay, don’t expect a federal case

03/20/2013
Attorneys who represent workers on meal-and-break-pay claims like to keep those cases in state courts. Employers usually prefer the federal court system. But getting a case moved to federal court isn’t as easy as it used to be.

No duty to accommodate when performance is impossible

03/20/2013
Sometimes, there’s no way for an in­­jured employee to perform the essential functions of a job, despite medical intervention. When that’s the case, it may be time to look for other options.

Court OKs mandatory tip pools for those who serve customers

03/20/2013
The Court of Appeal of California has finally answered a vexing question: Employers can order em­­ployees who receive direct customer tips to turn over some of the money to be redistributed to other employees who provide additional services.

Keep thorough records of skills-testing processes and results to counter claims of bias

03/20/2013
Do you administer make-or-break tests that everyone must pass? If so, make sure you test everyone under similar circumstances. Keep careful records of testing conditions and test results. That way, if someone claims the test was biased, you can at least show it was administered fairly and impartially.

In Chino, having too few time clocks costs $1 million

03/20/2013
The California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement has slapped citations worth more than $1 million on a warehouse company in Chino, alleging that 865 employees were cheated out of overtime pay they had earned, and didn’t get required 30-minute meal breaks.

Pregnancy problems? PDLL is minimum leave

03/20/2013
If an employee is experiencing pregnancy complications, it may not be enough to provide four months of leave under California’s Pregnancy Disability Leave Law. For practical purposes, four months is the minimum leave employers are required to provide. You may owe more time off under the California FEHA, as long as it doesn’t create an undue hardship on your business operations.

Consider ADA if sick worker needs more leave

03/20/2013
Employees who are temporarily unable to perform their jobs because of a disability are entitled to reasonable ADA accommodations. You’ll want to think about starting the interactive accommodations process as soon as a potentially disabled employee asks for more than the usual amount of leave.