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California End-of-Year Employment Law Wrap Up

It’s that time of year for employers to make their lists and check them twice. While doing so, there are several new employment laws to consider for 2023. The following outlines the major new laws that will affect most employers with California employees. Each of these are effective January 1, 2023 unless otherwise stated herein. […]

Beware of the Use of Artificial Intelligence Recruitment and Hiring Tools

As the use of artificial intelligence recruitment and hiring tools becomes more prevalent, it is important to remember that such processes are subject to anti-discrimination laws. Employers have an obligation to inspect such tools and processes for bias based on any protected class (including disability and age) and should have plans to provide reasonable accommodations […]

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The New Reality: The Remote Workplace Is Here—Maybe Permanently!

A recent survey conducted by the Society of Human Resource Managers revealed that one of the top employment issues businesses face today is how best to train supervisors to effectively manage a remote workforce.  Close behind supervisory training is the need for a formal, written telework policy.  The workplace strains brought about by the sudden […]

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There May Be Some Good News Coming to Companies Using Independent Contractors – At Least Under Federal Law

While states like California continue to make it tougher for companies to properly classify workers as independent contractors by adopting the ABC test, on September 25, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor issued a notice of proposed rulemaking seeking to simplify and clarify how to determine whether a worker is an employee or an independent […]

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The California Supreme Court Is To Decide the Retroactive Application of the Dynamex Independent Contractor Decision

On November 20, 2019, the California Supreme Court finally agreed to take up the question of whether the landmark Dynamex independent contractor decision applies retroactively. In April 2018, the California Supreme Court adopted the “ABC” test for determining whether a worker is an independent contractor or employee for purposes of certain wage and hour rights. […]

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A New Law Passed Raising the Standard for Classifying Workers as Independent Contractors in California

Since April 30, 2018, when the landmark California Supreme Court decision in Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Sup. Ct. (2018) 4 Cal.5th 903 (Dynamex) was issued, companies across the state have questioned whether the ABC independent contractor test adopted in that decision applies to them and/or their workers, how far it may apply, and whether it applies […]

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California’s Deadline for Giving Newly Required Sexual Harassment Prevention Training Was Extended

On August 30, 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 778 into law. This bill not only clarifies certain aspects of the expanded sexual harassment prevention training requirements but also, and most importantly for many employers, extends the deadline to January 1, 2021 to provide training to nonsupervisory employees and to train supervisors who were not […]

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Dynamex Applied Retroactively By The Ninth Circuit

Two days after the one year anniversary of the California Supreme Court’s Dynamex decision,  the Ninth Circuit issued a blow to companies in California. On May 2, 2019, the Ninth Circuit in Vazquez v. Jan-Pro Franchising International, Inc. held that the Dynamex decision adopting the more difficult to meet ABC test to determine whether workers […]

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Supreme Court to Consider Whether Title VII Covers LGBT Bias

On Monday, April 22nd, the U.S. Supreme Court said that it will hear three cases that turn on whether existing civil rights bans on discrimination in the workplace under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 include discrimination based on sexual orientation and transgender status. The decision will determine the issue that has […]

Might There Be an End in Sight to the Private Attorney General Act?

On November 28, 2018, a newly created association representing California-based employers called the California Business & Industrial Alliance filed a complaint for injunctive and declaratory relief against the California Attorney General seeking to enjoin the enforcement of the Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) and declare it unconstitutional. While PAGA took effect in 2004 – to […]