Insight & Commentary on California Workplace Law Issues & Developments
The California Supreme Court issued several important decisions in 2023 about issues such as COVID-19 take-home exposure and arbitrating Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) claims.
Employers should continue to be aware of several cases pending before the state’s high court. Here are the highlights and what these cases could mean for California employers.
PAGA…
On October 7, 2023, Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) 700, which makes it unlawful under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) for an employer to discriminate against a job applicant based on information regarding prior use of cannabis that is learned from a criminal history.
However, SB 700 does not preempt state…
2022 brought several significant decisions from the California Supreme Court, from decisions about meal and rest period penalties to burden shifting for whistleblower retaliation claims.
Here are some of the cases currently pending before the state’s high court that employers should be watching and what they mean for employment law in the Golden State.…
Recently the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released new guidance regarding discrimination against employees with caregiving responsibilities for family members. California similarly has a pending bill, Assembly Bill (AB) 2182, which seeks to add “family responsibilities” as a protected class under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA).
If passed, the bill…
The California Supreme Court has been busy in 2021 deciding cases that affect employers from how to pay meal and rest period penalties to when the statute of limitations for a failure to promote runs.
While the state’s high court answered some big questions in this last year, they still have several cases pertaining…
State legislatures continue to pass laws designed to enhance pay equity and transparency, with the laws of California and Colorado effective in 2021. The California law requires employee pay data reporting by race and gender, and the Colorado law requires robust pay and promotional transparency.
California
Under California’s pay data reporting law (SB 973), most…
While the California courts were relatively quiet during 2020, the California Supreme Court has a few heavy-hitting employment cases pending for 2021.
Here are the cases employers should be watching in the new year and why.
Donohue v. AMN Services, LLC
AMN Services (“AMN”) used a computer-based timekeeping system, which required employees such as Plaintiff…
On August 31st, the California legislature closed its 2019 – 2020 session with the Assembly and Senate passing over 35 employment-related bills. However, thus far, the only employment-related bill the Governor has signed is Assembly Bill 3364 (“AB 3364”). AB 3364, titled “Judiciary omnibus,” covers a myriad of items from the licensure of…
Whether the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses prevent civil courts from adjudicating employment discrimination claims brought by employees against their religious employer, where the employee carried out important religious functions, is the question presented in two consolidated cases before the U.S. Supreme Court: Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru, No. 19-267, and St. James…
Years after California legalized recreational use of cannabis, employers continue to struggle with determining their rights and liabilities regarding employees who engage in that activity.
In 2016, a majority of California voters approved Proposition 64, titled “The Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act” (Prop 64). Prop 64 permits adults 21 years of…
