The parent child bond has always been a sacred one. However, many of us struggle to balance work and family, and to make the time to give the attention we want to our children. Fortunately, there has been a rapidly growing trend of laws that protect the jobs of parents who want to bond with their new children. This is because there is a greater value on establishing the parent-child bond, on the importance of new parents learning how to be parents, and on the stress and burden of having to choose between a new child and losing employment.The Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) both provide parents of newborn or adopted children with unpaid, job-protected leave while the parent stays home to bond with the child. Previously under the CFRA, only employers with 50 or more employees were required to offer unpaid family leave. Senate Bill 63 Senate…Read More
Wage theft occurs when an employer fails to abide by an employee’s wage and overtime rights. This includes not paying an employee minimum wage, failing to fully pay overtime wages, not accurately counting work hours, and not allowing employees to take their legally entitled breaks. Wage theft is a recurring problem amongst too many employers in California. In fact, wage theft enrages us, as you work hard for your money and the law is designed to make sure that you are compensated fairly and are given breaks. If you suspect that your employer has unlawfully violated your wage and overtime rights, you have options. One of these options is to go it alone and confront your employer, file a formal complaint, or file a lawsuit on your own. However, the do it yourself approach can really backfire on you and end up damaging your ability to collect on a legitimate claim of wage theft. Instead,…Read More
Being part of a family business is part of the American dream for many families. It represents an opportunity to work with loved ones toward a common goal of making it as a family and supporting each other. Unfortunately, in some situations, there is a fine line between supporting your family and being exploited. If you are working for your family and feel that something is not right, it is important to understand that you have legal rights. What Is The Family Relationship? The Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Department of Labor establish that employers who are entirely staffed with certain family members are exempt from wage and overtime laws. Those family members include the owner’s parents, spouses, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, and in-laws. The only real exclusion is “distant relatives from separate households.” This means under federal laws, if you work for your brother’s family business, who only employs family members,…Read More
Last week, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a news release announcing that three subsidiaries of Chevron Corporation – one in California and two in Texas – must pay $1.5 million in back wages and penalties to 750 of its employees. The subsidiaries, it was determined, were acting in direct violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which provides protection to workers with regard to minimum wage and overtime pay. For Chevron, the problems started when the DOL’s San Francisco office found that employees were not being paid for time spent in briefings during shift changes. Yet these briefings, in which workers received instructions for what their shifts would entail, were an integral part of the job and employees deserved payment for their time. Chevron will now have to issue checks to those workers, and they will also receive damages for the missing wages. In all, the workers will each get roughly $2,000. How The FLSA…Read More
Employee misclassification is one of the most serious problems faced by workers, employers, and the economy as a whole. In fact, employee misclassification is such a huge problem that California legislature passed laws designed specifically to outlaw the practice. Under this legislation, employers face penalties of up to $25,000 for every violation. Misclassification refers to the practice of purposely classifying workers as contractors instead of rightful employees. This is fairly popular among employers, as it allows them to avoid paying overtime and minimum wages, health benefits, a range of taxes, and unemployment and workers’ compensation insurance. Yet in the current “share economy,” a number of companies – Uber most notable among them – have begun to face backlash from workers who demand full employee rights. How Misclassification Hurts Workers Misclassification hurts workers significantly. Contractors are, simply put, denied access to protections and benefits. Some examples of these protections and benefits include unemployment insurance, minimum wage, family and medical leave,…Read More
Many workers will have to be a more frugal than expected during this year’s holidays; a nationwide increase in overtime pay, codified by the federal government back in May, is being delayed. The law, which would have extended overtime benefits to roughly four million more workers, were set to take effect on December 1st. Late last month, however, the House passed a bill delaying the law’s implementation until 1 June 2017. It’s unlikely that the Senate, which is on recess until after Election Day, will have the time or the political capital to overturn the stay. Republicans unanimously voted for the bill, called The Overtime Review and Reform Act. (Five democrats voted for it as well.) They claimed the new statute would create a crushing financial burden for small businesses, and insisted on the need for a longer implementation period. In addition, the conservatives argue that the overtime rule paints with too wide of a brush, and…Read More
Interviewing for a new job can be a nerve wracking experience. You want the job, you need the money, you are nervous, and you want to make a good impression. In essence, you know that you will do great if they just give you a chance. Something that makes the interview process takes a turn into uncomfortable territory, and you leave feeling disrespected and confused. Take, for example, when professional sports teams ask potential draft picks about their sexual orientation. The fact is, not only are certain interview questions offensive, they are also unlawful. Discriminatory Questions Prohibited First and foremost, state and federal laws protect numerous classes of people from employment discrimination based on their protected status. This includes sex, race, color, disability, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, HIV/AIDS status, political affiliation, military status, or status as a victim of domestic violence or sexual assault. It is unlawful for an employer to fail…Read More
For years, Uber drivers across the globe have been fighting for a legal determination that they are employees of the company. The company has fought this classification and argues that they are independent contractors. Why? Because employees have many legal rights and protections that independent contractors do not, and cost employers a lot more money. The classification of independent contractor versus an employee makes a world of difference. Employees are entitled to minimum wage and overtime, to breaks, to paid leave, and to insurance. And significantly, employees are also protected by worker’s compensation coverage and by strong anti-discrimination laws. Unfortunately, there are unscrupulous employers out there who try and take advantage of hard working people by improperly treating them as independent contractors. To take thing further, some employers will try to provide themselves some cover in this improper classification by asking people to sign independent contractor agreements. In 2010, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals…Read More
Harassment in the work place makes an employee miserable. Not only is it wrong, but it can have serious mental health repercussions and also result in ineffective or poor work. It can also be unlawful. This is especially true if you can demonstrate that your employer has allowed you to work in a “hostile work environment.” What Constitutes Harassing Conduct? California Government Code Section 12940 makes it unlawful form an employer to harass an employee “because of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, marital status, sex, age, or sexual orientation”. In other words, to constitute harassing conduct, it must also be discriminatory based one of the aforementioned classifications. While there is no explicit definition of harassing conduct, the Fair Employment and Housing Commission regulations provide that it may include: Verbal harassment, which may include “obscene language, demeaning comments, slurs, or threats”; Physical harassment, such as “unwanted touching, assault, or…Read More
Being disabled is not a choice, nor should it ever be held against you. In reality, having a disability does not mean you cannot work, nor does it remove your qualifications in your career. In fact, people with disabilities are part of a protected class of people, who employers are legally prohibited from discriminating against. Under state and federal laws, employment discrimination occurs when an employer considers a person’s disability (actual or perceived) and exposes the person to adverse decisions or treatment based on the disability. California Offers Strong Protections California defines disabilities as conditions that limit a major life activity of a person and may include physical disabilities, mental disabilities, certain medical conditions, and age-related disabilities. This goes beyond federal law and therefore offers California employees greater protection from discrimination. Essentially, employers are required to evaluate applicants on their merit, on their qualifications, and not on their disability. In addition, an employer cannot ask…Read More
