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Q&A

What rules apply for paying an employee who has passed away?

10/03/2018
Q. If a worker dies, could we still have to pay his or her wages earned before the time of his or her death?

What are the rules for paying an employee who cannot be located?

10/03/2018
Q. One of our workers has gone missing. Could we still have to pay him for the time he worked before he disappeared?

Must we accommodate employees’ need to bring therapy animals to work?

10/03/2018
Q. One of our employees suffers from severe panic attacks and has a pet hamster that she says relieves her anxiety. She wants to bring her hamster to work in case she has a panic attack. Are we required to grant this request?

What are the California rules governing leave when parents must respond to their kids’ discipline problems?

08/27/2018
Q. Must we provide time off to an employee who needs to appear at school because his or her child was suspended from school?

3 questions on pay equity

06/27/2018
Where does the fight over pay equity stand? … How should we adjust to this trend? … What should we do now to ensure pay equity?

Are we allowed to refuse to hire employees with very thick foreign accents?

05/30/2018
Q. We are a large telemarketing company. We often receive customer complaints about employees who speak in thick accents. Can we refuse to hire individuals with accents for this reason?

3 questions about pregnancy leave in California

04/30/2018
What are California’s rules on pregnancy leave? … How should we handle pay while someone is out on pregnancy disability leave? … How to count pregnancy disability leave?

4 questions about Austin’s new sick leave law

03/28/2018
Answers to four reader questions about the new law.

Are truck drivers automatically due overtime?

03/22/2018
Q. Are motor carriers exempt from complying with California’s usual overtime pay requirements?

How should we handle transgender dress code?

03/22/2018
Q. A new employee refuses to comply with our dress code, which has slightly different requirements for men and women, because the individual is transgender. Though the new employee marked “female” on our employment application, the individual has since told us about identifying as a man. Can we require this employee to follow our dress code for women?