By Dana Peterson and Christopher Im
California’s Paid Sick Leave Law, AB 304, or the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014 as it is officially known, is a hot topic that we have blogged about a number of times. Eligible employees began accruing paid sick time under the new law on July 1st. However, proposed amendments to the
Continue Reading AT LAST, Amendments to CA’s Paid Sick Leave Law Signed By Governor!
By Dana L. Peterson and Christopher Im
Just weeks before California’s Paid Sick Leave Law fully takes effect on July 1, 2015, the California Legislature has formulated amendments to what is officially known as the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014 (a frequent subject of our blogs).
The proposed amendments, appearing in Assembly Bill 304, would treat some of the Paid Sick Leave Law’s worst maladies. To read the full text of the proposed amendments, click here.
The amendments should be chicken soup for the soul of employers who have found cold comfort in the FAQs issued by the Labor Commissioner. (See CA Paid Sick Leave Update). And AB 304, first introduced in February 2015, now has an “urgency clause” (added on June 2), which would make the amendments effective as soon as Governor Brown signs the bill. Without the urgency clause, the amendments would not be effective until January 2016.
The key proposed amendments include:
Continue Reading What the Doctor Ordered? AB 304’s Cure For Sick Pay Law
The Labor Commissioner has issued a new and updated set of FAQs interpreting California’s new Paid Sick Leave Law (AB 1522 of 2014).
If you’ve been following along, you know that after passage of the new law last year, the Labor Commissioner issued a template Poster and Wage Theft Prevention Notice for employers to use and post, as well as a first set of FAQs.
The new FAQs obligate employers to inform existing employees of the new sick pay law and changes in policy via the Wage Theft Notice, provide guidance regarding when such notice must be given to existing employees, and provide guidance regarding sick leave eligibility for seasonal or break-in-service employees, as well as part-time and alternative work schedule employees.
Wage Theft Prevention Notices: Employees hired before January 1, 2015 must receive a new Notice that contains the new information regarding paid sick time under amended Labor Code section 2810.5, even if there is no change in employer policy.
Employers must give all employees (not just those hired after January 1, 2015) a new Wage Theft Prevention Notice, announcing any change to paid sick leave, within seven days of the actual change. Although the FAQs are silent on this point, note that Labor Code section 2810.5, which requires Wage Theft Prevention Notices, applies only to non-exempt employees.
The “date of actual change” would depend on when the employer either establishes a paid sick program under the paid sick leave law or changes an existing paid leave program to comply with this law, but would be no later than July 1, 2015. Thus, the last date to provide notice of changes would be no later than July 8, 2015 (seven days after the July 1 sick leave entitlement effective date).
Employers who do not want to issue new Wage Theft Prevention Notices to all current employees may instead inform those employees of the change to paid sick leave by using an alternative method authorized by Labor Code section 2810.5(b)(1) or (b)(2) (e.g., giving notice of change in a pay stub or itemized wage statement). Employers who choose this route should take care to follow the requirements of these alternatives and keep records of having provided those employees with the notice.
Even employers whose existing policy satisfies the minimum requirements of the law must still provide notice—via the new Wage Theft Prevention Notice or an alternative method—regarding the new paid sick leave law. The notice must contain information about the new paid sick leave law and how the employer intends to meet its requirements for the particular employee. For example, a timely writing provided to each employee that refers to or summarizes the existing policy and contains the points of information specified in the revised Wage Theft Prevention Notice would comply with the individual notice requirement.
Continue Reading CA Paid Sick Leave Update: Labor Commissioner Issues More FAQs
By Kristina Launey, Dana Howells, and Christina Jackson
The California Legislature adjourned in the wee hours of the morning on August 30, in advance of the official August 31 close of the 2013-14 Legislative Session. It sent a number of employment-related bills to Governor Brown for consideration by his September 30, 2014 deadline to sign or veto the
Continue Reading CA Legislature and Governor Pass More Employment Laws: End of 2014 Session Summary
By: Kristina Launey and Daniel Kim
As noted previously in this space, California already permits employees to take many kinds of protected time off not generally available in other parts of the country. In 2013, California’s Legislature presented workers with even more kinds of legally-protected absences. It is hard to begrudge leaves of absence for crime victims and emergency
Continue Reading ‘Tis the Season… New CA Laws Give Employees More Legally-Protected Time Off
By Maya Harel and Colleen M. Regan
As previously reported here one of the pieces of 2013 California legislation that made a big splash is Assembly Bill 10 (AB 10). AB 10 amends Labor Code § 1182.12 and raises California’s minimum wage in two steps over 18 months, from $8.00 to $9.00 per hour (on July 1, 2014) and then
Continue Reading Increasing the CA Minimum Wage Makes A Big Splash, But What Are The Ripple Effects?
By Dana Peterson and Coby Turner
Depending on your view of the world, California legislators have either implemented much-needed protections for California’s immigrant workforce, or they have given the legislative equivalent of a “gift” to dishonest employees this holiday season. Starting January 1, 2014, workers will have immunity from disciplinary action for providing updated “personal information” to their employer, including,
Continue Reading California Employees Have Even More Protections to be Thankful for This Year
October 13, 2013, marked the last day for California Governor Jerry Brown to sign or veto bills the Legislature sent to him for approval in the first half of the 2013-14 Regular Session. Of the bills we tracked as most relevant to our clients that made it to the Governor’s desk, the vast majority—18 of 23—will become
Continue Reading CA Legislature and Governor Pass More Employment Laws: End of 2013 Session Summary
Since the 2013 portion of this California Legislative session concluded in mid-September, a number of employment-related bills have gone to Governor Brown for consideration. As of today, the Governor has signed 8 of those bills into law, covering:
✓ Minimum wage increase, from $8 to $10/hour, over two years
✓ Criminal background checks for youth sports
Last night — on the eve of the last day for the California Legislature to pass bills before interim recess in this 2013-2014 regular session — the Legislature sent to the Governor for signature AB 10, which, over time, will raise the minimum wage in California from $8.00 per hour to $10.00 per hour.
The Governor has already publicly
Continue Reading Bill To Increase CA Minimum Wage Headed To Governor, Sure to Pass
