Under current law, an employer who pays less than the minimum wage is subject to a Labor Commissioner citation that includes a civil penalty, restitution and liquidated damages (Labor Code Section 1197.1). AB 1723 authorizes the Labor Commissioner to also recover...

The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) has been amended by AB 1443 to: •    Provide protections against harassment to unpaid interns and volunteers; •    Provide protections against discrimination in an unpaid internship or in another limited duration ...

Under a law passed last year, AB 60, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is scheduled to begin issuing driver's licenses to undocumented persons who can submit satisfactory proof of identity and California residency.  AB 60 also made it unlawful for a...

The California Supreme Court was recently asked to decide if an employee's refusal to sign for the "receipt" of a disciplinary notice is "misconduct" which would disqualify him from receiving Unemployment Insurance.  The answer is NO. In the case, the Employer...

California Labor Code Section 2801 requires that employers must reimburse employees for certain expenses incurred in the course and scope of performing their job duties - this obligation includes the expenses associated with the employee's business related use of...

WINTER 2013     Well its that time of year again... time for planning the holidays, planning for the new year and with that comes the planning required with the legislation signed into new law in 2013 that will take effect during 2014. Below is a summary of many of...

All employers must have newly hired employees complete a I-9 form to establish their identity and their right to work in the United States.  The I-9 form has been revised many times and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security just issued an updated I-9 Form. While...

Now that the end of the year is fast approaching, it’s time to review what new laws the Governor has signed into law from the 2012 legislative session. Some of these new laws have previously been addressed in prior newsletters, but they are worth mentioning again...

The NLRB also recently held that standard at-will language in a non-union Employee Handbook violates section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act. The Employee Handbook stated:  “I further agree that the at-will employment relationship cannot be amended, modified or...

Many employers conduct a criminal history check with the background investigation of applicants as it is both reasonable to do so, and in some circumstances necessary to do so to avoid claims of “negligent hiring”.  Some businesses cannot legally employ felons and...