As soon as revelers counted down from “10” to “Happy New Year”, California officially became a “Sanctuary State.” One might think that such a designation only impacts local law enforcement, but thanks to Assembly Bill 450 (“AB 450”), employers in 2018 must also know how to deal with Federal immigration officials. As if complying with […]

Recently, our office has received many questions regarding investigations conducted by the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement’s (“DLSE”) Bureau of Field Enforcement, or “BOFE” for short. In some cases, the questions stem from a BOFE subpoena requesting that the employer provide information ranging from payroll records to text messages. In other cases, the questions stem […]

Effective January 1, 2018, California’s New Parent Leave Act for Small Employers (SB 63) requires California employers with 20-49 employees within a 75-mile radius to provide up to 12 weeks of job-protected unpaid leave to new parents for the purpose of bonding with a new child within one year of the child’s birth, adoption, or […]

On Thursday, October 12, 2017, the Governor signed Assembly Bill 168 (“AB 168”) into law, which takes effect on January 1, 2018.  AB 168 applies to all employers and specifically prohibits employers from relying on the salary history information of an applicant for employment as a factor in determining whether or not to make a […]

Whether your minimum wage employees are due for an increase in pay largely depends on where your business is located, how many employees you have, and where your employees actually perform their work. Apart from the federal and California minimum wage laws, a number of cities and counties throughout California have promulgated their own special […]

Effective March 1, 2017, California businesses as well as any establishment open to the public must designate existing single-user restroom facilities as “All-gender.” The new law, which adds Section 118600 to the California Health and Safety Code, provides that “All single-user toilet facilities in any business establishment, place of public accommodation, or state or local […]

We have some good news (at least for now) for employers.  A federal judge in Texas has issued a nationwide preliminary injunction against the Obama administration’s “final overtime rule” (the “Rule”).  This is the Rule that raises the salary test for Administrative, Executive, and Professional employees to qualify for exemption from overtime pay under federal […]

Article by: Brian E. Ewing, Esq. This year, it appears that the California Legislature focused less on passing bills that restrict an employer’s ability to manage its workforce compared to previous years.  Nonetheless, there are a few bills passed this year that are worth noting.  The following new laws take effect January 1, 2017 unless […]

Congress recently passed the “Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016.” This law allows employers who are the victim of theft of their trade secrets by employees to file a civil lawsuit in federal court, as well as in state court. The law is similar to, but not identical to, state trade secret protections.

Effective July 1, 2016 Not content with the state’s paid sick leave law, the City of Los Angeles has now passed its own generous paid sick leave ordinance, which mirrors the state law in many respects, but also doubles the amount of paid sick time employers must offer to employees within the city. Sick time […]