Seyfarth Synopsis: Can employers deny employment to people who use cannabis under a medical prescription authorized by state law? In more and more states, the answer is now “No.”
Changes in cannabis laws are creating a new haze for employers. What follows is a quick summary citing some (not all) states that now require employers to think twice before denying
Continue Reading Budding Development: States Requiring Employers to Tolerate Medical Cannabis Use
Seyfarth Synopsis: Dominating this spring’s planting of proposed employment-related legislation are bills aimed at ending sexual harassment and promoting gender equity. Among the secondary crops are bills regarding accommodation, leave, criminal history, and wage and hour law. It threatens to be another bitter fall harvest for California’s employer community.
California legislators stormed into the second half of the 2017-18 legislative
Continue Reading 2018 California Legislative Update: It’s Spring! What Bills Have Sprung?
We’re pleased to share a thoughtful look at whether lawsuits alleging illegal pay disparities under California law are suitable as class actions. This post, recently featured on Seyfarth’s Pay Equity Issues & Insights Blog, provides some compelling reasons to argue that they’re not.
Seyfarth Synopsis: Over the past few years we have seen groundbreaking changes to equal pay laws
Continue Reading Recent Pay Equity Cases Show That Such Cases Are Ill-Suited For Class Treatment
Seyfarth Synopsis: The natural inclination is to ignore attempts to dredge up claims of harassment that happened long ago. But no harassment claim is too old to investigate. Having strong anti-harassment policies and investigation procedures, along with a good work culture, can help employers avoid getting caught in the cross-fire of the “me-too” harassment dialogue.
The #MeToo movement has enveloped
Continue Reading The Stale Harassment Complaint: Coal In Your Stocking?
Seyfarth Synopsis: Governor Jerry Brown has till October 15 to approve bills the Legislature sent to his desk by its Friday, September 15, deadline, including bills that would require employers to ”show us the money” for certain employees and to make “mum be the word” for an applicant’s past conviction history.
The 2017 California Legislative Session kicked off on January
Continue Reading 2017 Labor & Employment Legislative Update: The End is Near!
Seyfarth Synopsis: California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing has just issued its Annual Report on civil rights complaints during 2016. Here are some highlights.
The DFEH hails as the largest state civil rights agency in the country, with 220 full-time employees operating out of five offices throughout California. Its annual report makes clear that its core work is litigation.
Continue Reading Hot Off The Press! DFEH’s Annual Report
Seyfarth Synopsis: California voters gave the green light to recreational use of marijuana with the passage of Prop 64. Marijuana users may have felt like they struck Acapulco Gold, but a review of the law on drug testing in the workplace may turn out to be a buzzkill.
When can an employer drug test its employees?
Last November, California
Continue Reading Marijuana at Work: Testing of (and for) Mary Jane
Seyfarth Synopsis: Governor Jerry Brown recently signed pay equity legislation to build on SB 358, a gender pay equity bill that he signed just last year.
Recent state pay equity initiatives (in Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York) have focused on gender. California is different. Leave it to the state that last year passed the nation’s strictest pay
Continue Reading Pay Equity Extends to Race, Ethnicity, Without Banning Salary Inquiries
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Fair Employment and Housing Council is vetting proposed regulations to prevent employers from discriminating against applicants or employees with criminal histories. Our colleague Kate Svinarich attended a recent public hearing and filed this report. And stay tuned for a later dispatch, featuring proposed regulations on Transgender Identity and Expression, which the FEHC considered at the same meeting.
Continue Reading FEHC Proposed Criminal History Regulations Put Employers in Hot Seat
It is not surprising that sparks may fly in the workplace, considering that most Americans spend more time at work than they do anywhere else. And as Valentine’s Day approaches, workplace romances are especially likely to flourish. Employers should be prepared to address issues that arise when Cupid’s arrow goes astray.
When Do Workplace Romances Become A Problem?
In California,
Continue Reading All Is Fair In Love And The Workplace?