If you’re doing business in California, you probably don’t need an employment lawyer to tell you that the state legislature continues to pass very employee-protective labor laws. Two more are about to take effect on July 1, 2017, that will affect businesses regulated...
Advising And Defending Businesses
Month: June 2021
Employer May Bar Union Organizers From Public Areas on its Property
On June 14, 2019, the National Labor Relations Board in UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside held that an employer may bar nonemployees from soliciting its employees on behalf of a union on company property that is open to the public, provided the employer applies its policy...
PAGA Action Seeking Only Civil Penalties Will Not Be Compelled to Arbitration
On June 19, 2020, the Court of Appeal for the First Appellate District in Olabi v. Neutron Holdings, Inc. affirmed a trial court’s order denying an employer’s petition to compel arbitration of a lawsuit alleging that the plaintiff and other workers had been...
Federal Law Prohibits Discrimination Based on Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Status
On June 15, 2020, the U. S. Supreme Court in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia held that an employer who fires an individual merely for being gay or transgender violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Court explained that because discrimination on the...
Employers in California Should Review Their Job Applications and Policies Regarding Criminal History to Ensure Compliance with New Regulations
Effective July 1, 2017, new regulations adopted by the California Fair Employment and Housing Council (FEHC) will restrict an employer’s ability to inquire about or consider the criminal history of applicants and employees, except where specifically...
Employee’s Failure to Allege Religious Discrimination in EEOC Charge Not Fatal to Her Lawsuit
On June 3, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court in Fort Bend County, Texas v. Davis held that an employee’s failure to file a charge with the EEOC alleging discrimination on the basis of her religion was not fatal to her lawsuit alleging religious discrimination against...
Summary Judgment for Owner of Business Who Was Not Involved With, and Did Not Participate in, Alleged Wage Violations
On May 28, 2021, a court of appeal in Usher v. White affirmed summary judgment in favor of the individual owner of a business who had been sued for alleged wage and hour violations under California law. In 2014, the plaintiffs commenced a wage-and-hour class action...
No Attorney’s Fees for Employer That Prevails on Wage Claim, Even When Authorized in Contract
On May 24, 2019, a California court of appeal in Dane-Elec Corp. v. Bodokh reversed an award of attorney’s fees to an employer that prevailed on its complaint against its former chief executive officer to recover on a promissory note, and on the cross-complaint...
EEOC: Employer May Offer Incentives to Employees to Get COVID Vaccinations
On May 28, 2021, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated and expanded its technical assistance related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The EEOC answers COVID-19 questions from the perspective of the federal EEO laws and in its update, addresses the...
NLRB Revised Election Rules Blocked by District Court
The United States District Court for the District of Columbia has blocked the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) from implementing five provisions of the rule changes it announced in December 2019. On June 1, 2020, the NLRB published a news release stating that “it...