Introduction
Hillary Baca has experience representing employers in both federal and state court and before administrative agencies. She advises employers on complex employment and traditional labor matters. She works with clients across a broad range of industries, but has particular experience in the healthcare industry.
My focus
I focus my practice on two areas: I defend clients in employment litigation and I provide advice and counseling to clients with both union-represented and non-union employees on how to best navigate complex labor and employment matters.
Advice and Counseling
I counsel clients on all areas of state and federal employment law, including wage and hour compliance, the limitations on pre-employment background checks, and state and local paid sick leave ordinances. I also advise on workplace investigations, personnel decisions and terminations, disability accommodations and leaves of absence management. I provide tailored advice to employers to help them avoid discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wage and hour claims. I also offer harassment prevention, sensitivity, and wage and hour compliance trainings to management and non-management employees.
Employment Litigation
I defend employers in litigation involving claims of employment discrimination, retaliation, wrongful discharge, harassment and wage and hour violations. I represent employers in both single-plaintiff and class-action matters and before administrative agencies, including the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH), Equal Opportunity Employment Commission (EEOC), Department of Labor (DOL), and the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE).
Labor Law
I have advised employers on a variety of labor matters. I also represent employers in collective bargaining agreement negotiations, proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and Public Employment Relations Board (PERB), and arbitrations related to contract interpretation and employee terminations. I have particular experience representing both public and private health care employers.
Looking ahead
I see more states and cities enacting legislation limiting the use of pre-employment background checks. I also see more local legislation creating paid sick leave entitlements for employees. Employers will have to be diligent to ensure compliance with overlapping state and local requirements in both areas of law.
/Insights
- “Pay Equity & Transparency Laws,” Nixon Peabody 2023 California MCLE Virtual Seminar, January 2023
- “California Labor & Employment Update,” Nixon Peabody Annual MCLE Seminar, November 2022
- “California Labor and Employment Law Update: Get Ready for 2021,” Nixon Peabody Annual MCLE Seminar, December 2020
- “MDA Advocacy Institute: Employment Rights for People Living with a Disability,” Muscular Dystrophy Association, Webinar, October 2020
- “Signet Furloughs Workers, Appoints Accounting Officer,” JCK Magazine, March 2020
- “Coronavirus Outbreak: Employment Law and Business Issues,” Jewelers of America, March 2020
- “California Labor and Employment Law Update: Get Ready for 2020,” Nixon Peabody Annual MCLE Seminar, November 2019
- “Ready, Set, Comply: Recent Developments in Labor and Employment Law,” Nixon Peabody Annual MCLE Seminar, San Francisco, January 2019
In the news
- Law360
Five new state laws that discrimination attorneys should know
Jan 1, 2025San Francisco Labor & Employment counsel Hillary Baca is quoted in this article covering newly effective state laws to be aware of in 2025. Hillary discusses California’s AB 2499, which expands workplace protections for victims of violence, and Illinois’ HB 3129, requiring employers to post salary ranges in job advertisements. She notes that AB 2499 creates far broader protections than previously existed and how it is important for employers to know the requirements for different jurisdictions for HB 3129, given the significant number of employees who telework across different states.
- Press Release
Nixon Peabody advises Galway Sustainable Capital in strategic sustainable agriculture investment
Nixon Peabody LLP is proud to have recently represented Galway Sustainable Capital in its strategic investment in Yield Resource Management Group (Yield RMG), a privately held developer and manager of sustainable agriculture, water and energy products. Read the press release.Feb 17, 2023 - Law360
Top arbitration developments of 2021
This 2021 roundup of arbitration developments related to wage and hour law quotes San Francisco Labor & Employment associate Hillary Baca related to a September ruling in Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America v. Bonta, when a Ninth Circuit panel found that California’s A.B. 51, which cracks down on arbitration agreements, doesn’t run afoul of the Federal Arbitration Act.Dec 22, 2021 - Law360
The biggest wage and hour cases of 2021
This article looking at the year’s top wage and hour rulings quotes San Francisco Labor & Employment associate Hillary Baca on how the retroactive application of the California Supreme Court’s Dynamex ruling, which made it harder for companies to classify workers as independent contractors, could impact employers.Dec 20, 2021 - Politico Pro
Employer conundrum: To test or not to test?
San Francisco Labor & Employment associate Hillary Baca, also a member of the firm’s Cannabis practice, is quoted in this article on how pressures of the recent labor shortage and changing attitudes toward cannabis have some employers reconsidering drug-testing policies. The article is based on a client alert Hillary co-authored with Rochester Labor & Employment partner Kim Harding.Oct 5, 2021 - Engineering News-Record
U.S. Appeals Court says gig worker rules apply in California trucking
This article, covering a recent Ninth Circuit ruling that California Assembly Bill 5 applies to the trucking industry in California, quotes San Francisco Labor & Employment associate Hillary Baca on the challenges it could create for commercial trucking companies.May 4, 2021 - Law360
Retroactive Dynamex Exposes CA Employers to Wage Suits
In this analysis of the California Supreme Court’s opinion that Dynamex applies retroactively, San Francisco Labor & Employment associate Hillary Baca provides commentary on potential implications for pending worker-classification cases as well as those coming down the pipeline.Jan 15, 2021 - Marijuana Venture
On High Alert: Running a Retail Business in the Age of the COVID Pandemic
San Francisco partner Alison Torbitt, who co-leads NP’s Food, Beverage & Agribusiness team, and San Francisco Labor & Employment associate Hilary Baca co-wrote this contributed article on how cannabis retailers can revamp their stores and policies to stay in compliance with state and local laws, while helping to prevent the spread of communicable illnesses to customers and employees.Aug 10, 2020 - Cannabis Business Executive
Marijuana Social Clubs: How Colorado is Setting the Pace
This article, on the reopening of Colorado’s marijuana hospitality industry, cites a recent NP alert that details guidelines for cannabis retailers to consider for revamping operations without spreading communicable illnesses. Cannabis Business Executive also re-published the complete NP alert, written by San Francisco Affordable Housing & Real Estate partner Alison Torbitt; Los Angeles Intellectual Property partner, Litigation Department vice-chair, and Fashion practice leader Staci Riordan; and San Francisco Labor & Employment associates Hillary Baca and Rachel Conn.June 17, 2020 - Daily Journal
How employers can prepare for expected waves of coronavirus-related litigation
Labor and Employment partner Bonnie Glatzer and associates Hillary Baca and Jade Butman, all in San Francisco, contributed this article on potential coronavirus-related litigation matters that California employers should be aware of, and how employers can prepare for possible lawsuits.June 3, 2020 - JCK Magazine
Signet furloughs workers, appoints accounting officer
This leading trade publication in the jewelry industry quotes San Francisco Labor and Employment associate Hillary Baca, who explained in a recent industry webinar why many employers prefer furloughs to layoffs during this time of economic uncertainty.March 31, 2020
Admitted to practice
California
Education
University of California, Berkeley, B.A.
University of Southern California, Gould School of Law, J.D.
Recognition
- The Best Lawyers in America© 2023, “Ones to Watch” for Labor and Employment Law – Management and Litigation – Labor and Employment in San Francisco, California
- Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch since 2022
Insights And Happenings
View AllProfessionals in the Practice Area
View AllStephen J. Jones
Partner / Co-Leader, Wage & Hour Compliance & Litigation Team- Rochester
- Office:+1 585.263.1386Mobile:+1 585.281.5880
- sjones@nixonpeabody.com
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