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Employment Law

New state lactation accommodation requirements may be coming to California

04/30/2019
California Senate Bill 142 would amend building codes to require new commercial buildings and those undergoing improvements costing over $1 million to include designated lactation spaces for employees.

Failure to pay overtime costs LA company $301,000

04/30/2019
Golden Life Supported Living Agency, a Los Angeles provider of services to clients with developmental disabilities, will pay $301,763 to 67 workers.

Arbitration agreements may not cover delivery drivers

04/30/2019
A California court has concluded that the Federal Arbitration Act, which makes the agreements enforceable, may not apply to delivery drivers engaged in interstate commerce.

Document why you decided not to rehire

04/30/2019
Sometimes, employers let employees gracefully leave instead of being fired. But what if the former employee later applies for a new opening?

Ensure your records show exactly when personnel decisions were made

04/30/2019
To prove retaliation, employees must show that the employer took some form of adverse action against them after they complained. That’s one reason employers must document all personnel decisions: So they can later tell a court exactly when an allegedly adverse action took place.

Ensure arbitration agreements apply equally to both employees and employer

04/30/2019
Arbitration can provide an easier, quicker and less expensive avenue than litigation for handling employment-related claims. But unless your arbitration agreement has been carefully reviewed for adherence to California contract law, the agreement may be struck down.

No FEHA accommodation required if it won’t enable disabled employee to perform job

04/30/2019
The California Fair Employment and Housing Act offers protection for disabled workers who need reasonable accommodations in order to perform the essential functions of their jobs. But that protection isn’t unlimited.

Court rules ministerial exception is limited

04/30/2019
The ministerial exception is based on the U.S. Constitution’s prohibition of state interference with religious practices. In a recent California state court case, a religious employer found the exception is limited.

Beat bogus bias claim with detailed account

04/30/2019
If an employee sues you for discrimination, you will need to put up a vigorous, detailed defense even if you have done nothing wrong. If you can counter the employee’s claim by explaining exactly what happened, that puts the ball back in the employee’s court.

Bill would add data-breach notification requirements

04/30/2019
A bill before the California Assembly would expand the types of data breaches requiring victims to be notified. Employers may regularly store several kinds of data that would be newly protected by Assembly Bill 1130.