Wage and Hour

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On May 19, 2015, the Los Angeles City Council passed proposed legislation to considerably increase the City of Los Angeles’ minimum wage. The measure—which was approved by an overwhelming 14-1 vote—directs the City Attorney to write an Ordinance that will, if approved by a final vote of the Council and then the Mayor, increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2020.
Continue Reading Los Angeles Minimum Wage Set to Increase to $15 Per Hour by 2020

On May 7, we conducted an in-person panel with the Office of Labor Standards Enforcement (OLSE) in San Francisco. We know many of you were unable to join us, and are therefore hosting a webinar session led by Jackson Lewis Shareholder Punam Sarad to summarize key takeaways from the panel discussion.

Background: San Francisco has added two ordinances that employers must comply with beginning July 3, 2015. The San Francisco Formula Retail Labor Protections Ordinance includes provisions that impact scheduling, on-call work, worker retention and time off for formula retail employees. Despite its name, the new law impacts many employers who are not in the retail industry including restaurants, movie theaters, fitness and gym facilities, financial services companies, spa, salon and massage establishments, and more. Join us to learn more about how the law impacts your business and best practices for ensuring compliance.
Continue Reading Webinar: San Francisco Formula Retail Worker Bill of Rights – Are You Safe?

California employers might receive much-needed clarification on whether and to what extent employees can remain “on call” during rest breaks.  On April 29, 2015, the California Supreme Court granted review of Augustus v. ABM Sec. Services, Inc., Nos. B243788 & B247392 (Cal. Ct. App. Jan. 29, 2015).

Earlier this year, the California Court of Appeal ruled that security guards were provided lawful rest breaks even though the company required the guards to remain “on call” during the rest breaks.  In so holding, the Court of Appeal ruled that remaining on call during rest breaks does not “constitute performing work” under Section 226.7 of the Labor Code and the applicable wage order.  For additional details about the underlying decision, please see our prior blog post.
Continue Reading California Supreme Court to Review On-Call Rest Breaks

On February 26, 2015, in Franco v. Arakelian Enterprises, Inc., Case No. B232583, the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District held that trial court proceedings on claims pursuant to the California Private Attorney General Act (“PAGA”) (Labor Code § 2698 et seq.) must be stayed pending individual arbitration of the underlying individual wage and hour claims (originally pled as classwide claims) pursuant to an arbitration agreement containing a classwide arbitration waiver.
Continue Reading California Court of Appeal Rules PAGA Claims Must Be Stayed Pending Outcome of Individual Arbitration on Underlying Individual Wage and Hour Claims

In November 2014, Oakland voters passed Measure FF, which went into effect on March 2, 2015, and made changes to the City’s minimum wage, paid sick leave laws and hospitality service charges.

Minimum Wage Increase

Effective March 2, 2015, the minimum wage in Oakland was raised from $9.00/hour to $12.25/hour for any employee who performs at least two hours of work within Oakland in a workweek. This law applies to full-time, part-time, temporary and seasonal employees.

Paid Sick Leave

As of March 2, 2015, employers must pay paid sick leave for employees who were employed on or before that date. Employers are permitted to restrict paid sick leave for employees hired after March 2, 2015; employers can opt not to allow these employees to use any accrued paid sick leave until their 90th calendar day of employment.Continue Reading Oakland’s New Law Raises the City’s Minimum Wage, Provides for Paid Sick Leave, and Addresses Hospitality Services Charges

In a recent turn of events, the California Court of Appeal ruled in Gerard v. Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center (Feb. 10, 2015) that healthcare workers cannot waive their second meal period when working shifts in excess of 12-hours despite the Industrial Welfare Commission’s (“IWC”) order to the contrary. The court found that the IWC lacked authority to circumvent the California Labor Code and, therefore, partially invalidated Wage Order No. 5-2001, which governs the healthcare industry.
Continue Reading Wage Order No. 5-2001 Partially Invalidated: Healthcare Workers Cannot Waive Their Second Meal Period When Working More Than 12 Hours

Last year the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) and the Department of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) initiated a campaign, entitled “Wage Theft is a Crime,” to educate California workers about the complexities of California’s wage laws. DIR Director Christine Baker stated that the “department’s mission is to protect California’s workers with comprehensive labor laws and enforcement focused on businesses that intentionally skirt the law.” The department’s recent effort is the “Wage Theft is a Crime” campaign which encourages workers, especially those in low-wage industries, to report possible labor code violations within the workplace. In support of this program, educational materials have been distributed through local events, mailings, and digital and print media in English, Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Hmong and Tagalog.
Continue Reading California Department of Industrial Relations and Labor Commissioner Champion “Wage Theft Is A Crime” Campaign

Two Assembly Bills addressing employee wages in California recently were referred to legislative committees in late January and early February 2015.  Although early in the legislative process, both could have a palpable impact on employers doing business in California.

Senate Bill 3 – Minimum Wages

The first, Senate Bill (SB) 3, proposes to increase minimum wages twice more over the next two years.  Specifically, SB 3 seeks an increase to $11 per hour effective January 1, 2016, and then $13 per hour effective July 1, 2017.  Further, the bill proposes an annual automatic minimum wage adjustment, beginning January 1, 2019, to correspond with the rate of inflation, unless the average percentage of inflation for the previous year was negative.  Thus, should SB 3 pass, employers can expect multiple additional minimum wage increases over the next two years, followed by potential annual increases every year thereafter.
Continue Reading More California Wage Changes in the Works

Reversing a trial court’s awarding of a $90 million judgment in a class action case for alleged rest period violations under California law, the California Court of Appeal has ruled that a security company had provided its security guards with proper rest periods, even though they were required to remain “on call” during those breaks.…

Employers received a welcome development late last week when the California Supreme Court decided to review the controversial Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court (SC S222732/B249546 rev. granted 1/28/15) regarding misclassification of independent contractors. This case is important since it arguably created a different definition of “employee” for determining if an individual is misclassified as an independent contractor with respect to violations of the California Industrial Welfare Commission (“IWC”) Wage Orders.  The Court will consider the following issue:
Continue Reading Controversial Dynamex Case Regarding Misclassification of Independent Contractors to be Reviewed by California Supreme Court