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In a dramatic victory for employers, California’s Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) is expected to be reformed this week. The reform, expected to be signed into law this week, has the potential to severely limit employers’ exposure so long as they take “reasonable steps” to address Labor Code issues proactively. This reform has the potential…

On January 13, 2023, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced an initiative to extend more protection against deportation for undocumented immigrants who report labor rights violations by employers. These protections are meant to allow undocumented workers to speak out about labor violations without fear of retribution. With this enhanced initiative, DHS provides an improved…

Non-profits face unique HR legal challenges. While counter-intuitive, these businesses are often more vulnerable to legal disputes than for-profit companies. This session will focus exclusively on what these agencies must do to ensure legal compliance and minimize costly litigation: Why unions are focusing so much attention on non-profits and what you can do right now…

In recent years, the California Legislature has limited the use of non-disparagement and confidentiality provisions in severance agreements. For example, non-disparagement provisions in California must now include a disclaimer clarifying that employees are still permitted to discuss allegedly unlawful conduct they experienced in the workplace and confidentiality provisions are prohibited in cases where an employee…

If you use a staffing agency for your workforce, the California Supreme Court just issued an important decision that may affect your rights. In Grande v. Eisenhower Medical Center, the California Supreme Court held that a wage-hour class action settlement for $750,000 between an employee and the staffing company did not preclude the employee from…

On January 14, 2021, the California Supreme Court issued a disappointing decision in Vazquez v. Jan-Pro Franchising International, Inc., determining that the “ABC test” the court formulated in Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court is retroactive. To put this in context, we look back to the April 30, 2018 Dynamex decision that upended the…

Our 20-part blog series, Planning for the Rebound, is now at the end, which may leave you thinking that you are prepared for anything that could possibly come your way. Not to dull your ebullient mood, but you are not. Problems will arise, and you will face issues that you never dreamed could arise. In…

Over the past few months, California cities, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Jose, and Oakland have raced to implement emergency sick leave ordinances to provide paid leave to employees not covered by the federal Families First Coronavirus Act (FFCRA). Consequently, California employers have had to grapple with quickly changing laws that vary based on…

Nearing the end of spring, tens of thousands of undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate students and trainees are completing their studies and heading into the job market. Many of these individuals expected to prepare for and take professional licensing examinations (e.g., law, nursing, teaching, medicine). And many may have lined up job offers, and planned to…

In prior blog posts about the coronavirus pandemic, we’ve looked at strategies and steps employers can take to adapt their workplaces to the “new normal” (which, as we all know, is going to look quite different from the “old normal”). We’ve gone in-depth with the steps employers should take to ensure employees are safe upon…