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California Labor & Employment Law

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CALIFORNIA LABOR & EMPLOYMENT LAW

The state with the largest number of employees in the nation is also home to employee-friendly courts, aggressive administrative agencies, and a vast and often unique body of employment laws and regulations with significant differences from federal law. More than 30 of Nixon Peabody’s Labor and Employment attorneys work in California and regularly defend clients in California labor and employment law matters. We help our clients issue-spot and develop creative compliance solutions for California’s unique workplace rules including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Wage and hour law—California differences from federal law include “daily” overtime, different tests for exempt status, evolving law on mandatory meal and rest periods with special penalties, unique and often arcane provisions governing payment of wages and vacation time, prevailing wage rules, and more lenient rules for class action lawsuits.
  • Antidiscrimination and harassment laws—California’s antidiscrimination laws are broader than federal law. They include protections for sexual orientation and marital status, and a more liberal “continuing violation” theory.
  • RIFs—Under California law, using salary as the basis for selecting employees for layoff may not be a defense to age discrimination where doing so disparately impacts older employees; and California has a state “Baby WARN” Act that covers more employers than the federal version and is different in several significant respects.
  • Leave laws—California’s numerous leave laws have their own procedures, forms, and requirements, and often require more and/or different leave than under federal law. Examples include pregnancy leave and PFL, a statewide paid family leave law with no federal corollary.
  • Employee and applicant privacy—California restrictions on background checks, investigative consumer reports, and disclosure of medical information are typically broader than federal restrictions. Employees have broad-ranging access to personnel records. Constitutional privacy protection in California extends to employees of private employers.
  • Damage remedies for undocumented workers—California law allows undocumented workers to collect back pay for violations of state labor and employment laws.
  • Expanded whistleblower protection—California law contains multiple whistleblower provisions, covering a greater number of employers than the federal Sarbanes-Oxley Act and adding more penalty provisions.
  • Cal/OSHA—Cal/OSHA is, by far, the most rigorous and extensive occupational safety and health program in the nation. Cal/OSHA has increased civil and criminal penalties and has requirements governing subjects for which there are no Fed/OSHA standards. These include specific rules for written injury and illness prevention programs (IIPPs), ergonomics, heat stress, and mold abatement.
  • Domestic partner benefits—Registered domestic partners have the same rights and obligations as spouses under California law.
  • Unique municipal ordinances—A number of local governments have taken California’s expansive labor and employment laws and expanded them still further. Thus, in some cities and counties, employers are confronted with local mandatory health care laws, “living” wage requirements, additional domestic partner benefit requirements, local prevailing wage laws, additional antidiscrimination provisions, and more.
  • Anticompetition provisions—California has broad restrictions on noncompete, nonsolicitation, and other restrictive covenants.
  • Wrongful discharge law—California has long led the nation in the development of wrongful discharge law.
  • Obscure labor code provisions—California’s extensive labor code and other employment laws contain numerous traps for the unwary employer, including both arcane and cutting-edge provisions. These include but are not limited to rules on employee inventions, lactation privileges, a “pants rule,” rules governing access to employee records, restrictions on out-of-state recruiting, alcohol and drug rehabilitation requirements, employee jury duty, and employee literacy assistance.
  • Incentives for employee lawsuits—California has enacted the Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) providing additional incentives, such as attorneys’ fees and penalties, for plaintiffs to file lawsuits on behalf of themselves and “other current or former employees.”

Thought Leadership/Alerts

New decision, rules require new focus on pregnancy leaves and accommodation in California
Employment Law Alert | March 18, 2013

Mixed win for employers: California sets new standard in discrimination cases
Employment Law Alert | February 12, 2013

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California employment legislation: What's new for 2013?
Employment Law Alert | October 5, 2012

California becomes third state to enact social media password law, joining Maryland and Illinois
Employment Law Alert | October 2, 2012

California joins other states in making franchisor potentially liable as franchisee's "employer;" opens door to broader vicarious liability claims
Franchise Law Alert | July 12, 2012

California charter cities do not have to pay prevailing wages on local public projects involving local public funds
Employment Law Alert | July 10, 2012

California court: class arbitration waivers allowed after all
Employment Law Alert | June 20, 2012

California upholds personal attendant exemption when health-related tasks involved, as efforts to eliminate it continue
Employment Law Alert | May 29, 2012

Brinker sequel: no attorney's fees allowed on California meal and rest period claims
Employment Law Alert | May 7, 2012

California Supreme Court resolves key meal and rest period issues for California employers
Employment Law Alert | April 12, 2012

California Supreme Court sets stage for major decision on employers' rounding of time entries
Employment Law Alert | February 14, 2012

New ruling further expands California's commission pay overtime exemption
Employment Law Alert | February 13, 2012

California clarifies reporting time pay for scheduled meetings, split shift premiums
Employment Law Alert | January 18, 2012

Webinar Recording: San Francisco Health Care Security Ordinance: New Notice Obligations and Year-end Deadline
January 9, 2012

California Labor Commissioner issues template notice under Wage Theft Protection Act
Employment Law Alert | January 6, 2012

San Francisco raises minimum wage to over $10 an hour
Employment Law Alert | January 5, 2012

California holds that state overtime law applies to non-residents working in the state
Employment Law Alert | July 14, 2011

Proposed Cal/OSHA revisions on the horizon: what SB 829 could mean for employers
Employment Law Alert | July 13, 2011

Connecticut becomes the first state to require employer funded paid sick leave for “service workers”
Employment Law Alert | June 24, 2011

Defense goes up in smoke — discharge for medical marijuana use upheld in Washington State
Employment Law Alert | June 23, 2011

Inevitable disclosure doctrine is alive and well in Massachusetts
Employment Law Alert | June 20, 2011

Representative Weiner’s online conduct: a reminder to employers about the dangers of employee misuse of social media and company resources
Employment Law Alert | June 14, 2011

Supreme Court clears the way for employee arbitration agreements waiving class action rights
Employment Law Alert | April 28, 2011

New FLSA rules address tip pooling, fluctuating workweek, and other issues
Employment Law Alert | April 13, 2011

California lawsuits have employees standing up for their right to sit down
Employment Law Alert | April 7, 2011

New York Department of Labor releases Wage Theft Prevention Act guidance and forms
Employment Law Alert | April 4, 2011

New York Wage Theft Prevention Act effective April 9, 2011
Employment Law Alert | March 28, 2011

Supreme Court’s recent “cat’s paw” decision may burn the hands of employers
Employment Law Alert | March 11, 2011

Supreme Court declines opportunity to resolve Circuit split regarding FLSA exemptions
Employment Law Alert | March 1, 2011

The NLRB/Facebook case may have settled, but employer social media policies are still under attack
Employment Law Alert | February 24, 2011

California court weighs in on meal period rules
Employment Law Alert | February 24, 2011

California Court holds employers liable for up to two hours’ wages per day for meal and rest period violations
Employment Law Alert | February 23, 2011

U.S. Supreme Court announces broader employee protection under Title VII
Employment Law Alert | February 11, 2011

The NLRB broadens employee protection under federal labor law by recognizing a “preemptive strike” theory of retaliation
Employment Law Alert | February 7, 2011

Ninth Circuit decision makes it even more difficult for employers to recover attorney’s fees incurred defending against frivolous claims in multi-count suits
Employment Law Alert | January 25, 2011

Ninth Circuit holds that resignations in advance of, but in response to, announced plant closure are not “voluntary departures” under WARN Act
Employment Law Alert | January 25, 2011

California mandates paid leave for organ or bone marrow donation
Employment Law Alert | January 18, 2011

Circuit Court Holds Private Employers Permitted to Reject Applicants Based on Past Bankruptcy Filing; Bar on Termination and Other Discrimination For Existing Employees Remains
Employment Law Alert | January 10, 2011

New California meal period exemptions in effect
Employment Law Alert | January 7, 2011

Restaurant and hotel industry wage and hour alert
New York Department of Labor issues final Wage Order effective January 1, 2011, setting new pay and notice requirements

Employment Law Alert | December 20, 2010

New York makes several changes to Labor Law
Employment Law Alert | December 15, 2010

California resolves limitations periods on waiting time penalties claims
Employment Law Alert | December 9, 2010

Media frenzy over NLRB complaint against Connecticut employer for terminating employee who criticized employer on Facebook not warranted—yet
Employment Law Alert | November 16, 2010

Employers beware: revise employment agreements and severance agreements soon to avoid tax trap
Employment Law Alert | November 11, 2010

Complying with the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act –acquisition, storage, disclosure, and social media
Employment Law Alert | November 11, 2010

No reasonable expectation of privacy in content posted to social networking websites, regardless of individual privacy settings
Employment Law Alert | October 13, 2010

It’s a cold, cold world: tech companies agree to halt “no cold-call” agreements that Justice Department charges are illegal per se
Employment Law Alert | September 29, 2010

New York employers must provide funeral and bereavement leave to employees in same-sex relationships
Employment Law Alert | September 3, 2010

Massachusetts employers must immediately change how they handle employee documentation in light of the amended Massachusetts personnel records statute
Employment Law Alert | August 19, 2010

Massachusetts bans criminal history questions on job application forms: employers must take action or risk noncompliance
Employment Law Alert | August 12, 2010

Employers beware: Your outside sales representatives may be entitled to overtime pay
Employment Law Alert | July 14, 2010

FMLA protections extended to same-sex and other parents without a biological or legal relationship to a child
Employment Law Alert | June 24, 2010

U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division’s activist agenda — significant new mandates, including required classification analyses and worker disclosures
Employment Law Alert | June 10, 2010

Restrictive-covenant federal lawsuit over social media conduct raises novel, far-reaching questions for employers
Employment Law Alert | June 2, 2010

Employers must provide breaks for nursing mothers pursuant to new FLSA amendment
Employment Law Alert | June 1, 2010

Defense Department publishes Interim rule implementing Franken Amendment: What it means for employment arbitration agreements for defense contractors
Employment Law Alert | June 1, 2010

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Media Clips

    • Clarifying ‘Show-Up’ and Split-Shift Wage Orders
      California and Employment Law 360 | January 30, 2012

      This article, authored by San Francisco Labor & Employment counsel Paul Lynd, discusses the California Court of Appeal’s resolution of two frequent questions arising under California’s reporting-time pay and split-shift premium requirements.

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    Events

    California Labor and Employment Law