Gardina-Quintanilla-Amber-SD-[440x280]As California employers are aware, the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014 (Labor Code section 245, et seq.) went into effect this year. Under the Act, employers may choose between granting sick leave under an “up-front” method or an accrual method. Employers are permitted to offer more sick leave than the Act requires, but must meet certain minimum leave requirements. As employers prepared for July 1, 2015, the date on which employees became eligible to use and accrue sick leave under the new law, many were struck by how little guidance the new law provided for the realities of the workplace. Continue Reading DLSE Issues First Bit of Guidance on New Paid Sick Leave Law

A sharply divided National Labor Relations Board has announced a new standard for determining joint employer status under the National Labor Relations Act. Browning-Ferris Industries of California, Inc., 362 NLRB No. 186 (Aug. 27, 2015). One of the most significant decisions issued by the Board in recent years, it is likely to impact the labor relations and business relationships of many companies. Continue Reading Labor Board Sets New Standard for Determining Joint Employer Status

Jackson Lewis Shareholder Mitchell F. Boomer will be speaking at Trade Secrets Issues: Ignore Them at Your Peril, hosted by the Chinese American Lawyers of the Bay Area (CALOBA), as well as sponsors Jackson Lewis P.C. and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP. Jackson Lewis Associate Stephanie Yang will be moderating the event, which will feature a light dinner and insights from Zheng (Jen) Liu, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe Of Counsel; John H. Hemann, Assistant U.S. Attorney; and Robin Linsenmayer, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe Of Counsel.

 

Date:                   Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Time:                  6:30-9:00 p.m.

Location:           Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP

                             1100 Marsh Road, Menlo Park, CA 94025

 

Registration:    Complimentary

 

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

 

On August 24, 2015, the California Senate passed measure AB-465 which prevents employers from requiring employees to sign an arbitration agreement as a condition of employment. The Senate approved this measure by a vote of 22-15. In support of this measure, Democratic Assemblyman Roger Hernandez stated, “No worker should be forced to choose between a job and giving up core labor rights and procedures.”  Continue Reading The California Senate Passes a Bill That May Abolish Arbitration Agreements

211_David_S_Bradshaw_Sacramento_440x280National workplace law firm Jackson Lewis P.C. congratulates Sacramento Shareholder David S. Bradshaw for being selected as one of the Sacramento Business Journal‘s Best of the Bar 2015. Attorneys named to the list will be honored at a cocktail reception this evening at The Mix Downtown.

The journal designates local attorneys who are nominated by their peers and vetted by a panel of attorneys and serves as a resource for companies and individuals looking to hire an attorney in the Sacramento area.

 

Our California Summer E-Series Webinar, How to Avoid Cal/OSHA’s Most Commonly Violated Standard and Develop an Effective Injury Illness Prevention Program for Your Workplace, is now posted for review.  Continue Reading Recorded California Summer E-Series Webinar Now Available for Viewing: How to Avoid Cal/OSHA’s Most Commonly Violated Standard and Develop an Effective Injury Illness Prevention Program for Your Workplace

National workplace law firm Jackson Lewis P.C. congratulates the following California Shareholders for being named to the 2016 edition of Best Lawyers: Mark Attwood, Mia Farber, Michael A. Hood, Joel P. Kelly, Jay Adams Knight, Thomas G. Mackey, Fraser A. McAlpine, Mark S. Ross and Craig A. Schloss.

Mark S. Ross was also named “Lawyer of the Year” in his respective specialty and metropolitan area. To see all Jackson Lewis attorneys who made the list, read the full article here.

Lawyers on the Best Lawyers in America list are divided by geographic region and practice areas. They are reviewed by their peers on the basis of professional expertise, and undergo an authentication process to make sure they are in current practice and in good standing.

 

 

An employment arbitration agreement that incorporated the American Arbitration Association’s National Rules for the Resolution of Employment Disputes vested the arbitrator with the power to decide whether the agreement authorized class-wide relief, the California Court of Appeal has ruled. Universal Protection Service LP v. Superior Court, No. C078557 (Cal. Ct. App. Aug. 18, 2015). The Court denied an employer’s petition to set aside the trial court’s order compelling class arbitration and ordered that the arbitrator should determine the class issue. Continue Reading California Court Holds Arbitrator Decides Class Arbitrability Where Agreement Specifies AAA Rules

If a background check includes information about a job applicant’s character, California’s background check law applies, the California Court of Appeal has held, rejecting an employer’s challenge to the California Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act (Cal. Civ. Code § 1786 et seq.) (“ICRAA”). Connor v. First Student, Inc., No. B256075 (Cal. Ct. App. Aug. 12, 2015). Continue Reading Constitutional Challenge to California’s Background Check Law Rejected

A California federal judge dismissed a putative employment collective action last week, brought by individuals who wrote reviews on Yelp, a popular online business rating website predicated on user-reviews, holding that an individual who acts for personal pleasure without a promise of pay does not have a claim for wages under federal labor law. Jeung, et al., v. Yelp, Inc., Case No. 15-cv-02228-RS, U.S.Dist. (N.D. Cal. 2015). Continue Reading Common Sense Prevails as Court Knocks Out Yelp Reviewers’ Class Action Seeking Pay for Voluntary Online Reviews