Frustrated with a lagging rate of vaccinations, the Biden Administration decided to get out the stick since the carrot has not improved the vaccination rates to the levels that it wants to see. The Department of Labor, through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), plans to issue an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) within the […]
Most employers in California know that they are required to provide non-exempt employees with a 30-minute meal break whenever the employee works more than five hours, a second 30-minute meal break if the employee works more than ten hours and a 10-minute rest break for every four hours (or major fraction thereof) an employee works. Most employers […]
On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021. Within this $1.9 trillion relief Bill, Congress extended certain previously enacted COVID-19 stimulus package provisions and expanded on previous measures, providing more relief and creating new obligations. Here, we highlight a few key provisions of the Act relevant to employers.
COVID-19 has altered the way nearly every employee performs their work. Videoconferencing and phone calls have largely replaced in-person visits and face-to-face meetings in many workplaces. By extension, many sales employees who used to visit customers in person now do so remotely. While convenient, this practice may compromise their status as exempt employees under federal […]
On August 8, 2020, President Trump issued four executive actions–one executive order and three Presidential Memoranda–aimed at extending various coronavirus relief programs that have already expired, or are set to expire, in the absence of congressional action. These executive actions may be subject to legal challenges, including that the President exceeded his authority by taking […]
As businesses begin to contemplate reopening, what will be the expected norms for employees, vendors, customers, and visitors? Click here for more information.
In 2015, the NLRB adopted a more relaxed standard for determining when an entity could be considered a joint employer and thus liable for alleged workplace wrongs along with a direct employer. Of course the result of the loosening of the reins meant an increase in the number of defendants listed on complaints as potentially […]
Not sitting on its laurels, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has already issued three new opinion letters to begin the year. Two deal with issues under the FLSA and a third addresses issues under the FMLA. Opinion letter number one provides guidance as to the nature of the calculation of the regular rate of […]
The California Court of Appeal in Nieto v Fresno Beverage Company took the position that a driver who delivered beverages solely within the state of California was nonetheless a “transportation worker” who was exempt from the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) provisions that encourage a policy favoring arbitration. The court embraced the reasoning that “intrastate delivery […]
In January, California ushered in a new law designed to strengthen wage protections for employees who work under private construction contracts. The law makes all “direct contractors” potentially liable for wages incurred by an employee of any subcontractor-at any tier. The statute attempts to limit the remedies to those of unpaid wages, fringe or benefit […]
