As was discussed in prior our Newsletters, effective January 1, 2013, all commission agreements must be put in writing. The amendment to the Labor Code applies to all employers whether or not located within California, with employees located within the state....

An employer is obligated to pay all “hours worked” by a non exempt employee.  “Hours worked” includes all time the employee is “required or permitted to work, whether or not required to do so.” In Section 2 of Wage Orders 4 and 5 (which govern Professional, Technical...

Employers should continue using the current Form I-9 until further notice. This form has a control number expiration date of August 31, 2012. The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services states that this form should continue to be used even after August 31,...

Governor Brown recently signed AB 1964, which will modify the California Fair Employment and Housing Act's (FEHA) relating to discrimination based on one's religious beliefs. While religious beliefs have always been included in FEHA as a “protected classification” and...

California employers may want to be aware of a number of employment-related bills still pending before the California Legislature, some of which are listed below.  Pending bills must be passed by each house by August 31.  After that, the Governor has until September...

In a recent decision the California Appellate Court determined that an employee who was terminated for refusing to sign a disciplinary notice had committed misconduct under the Unemployment Insurance Code, and thus was not entitled to unemployment insurance benefits....

As the weather heats up during the summer months, some employees may take it upon themselves to modify the manner in which they dress, and some companies may also wish to implement a more casual summer dress code. Either of these situations require some attention to...

Californian court recently held that it was not retaliation when the employer took disciplinary action against an employee who filed a false report of harassment. (Joaquin v. City of Los Angeles) In this case, a police officer sued the City of Los Angeles, claiming...

As employers recognize there are circumstances when employees have legitimate reasons to be absent or tardy, or employees may need to leave early to attend to personal matters. There are other times however when employers suspect that an employee's stated reason for...

Under California law, it is the general principal that each side pays its own attorney's fees. However, many laws specifically entitle the "prevailing party" to recover reasonable attorney's fees from the losing party. Other provisions of the Labor Code provide that...