Q Can we mandate a drug screening upon hire for some job types and not others? Yes. There's no federal law prohibiting you from screening some employees but not others based on the type of job they will hold. Generally...
Employment Law Letter
Q In interviews with prospective employees, can we ask about their COVID-19 vaccination status? Generally speaking, employers can ask prospective employees about their COVID-19 vaccination status. This doesnt mean...
On September 15, 2021, a divided panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals (whose rulings apply to all California employers) ruled a California employer that attempts to impose mandatory arbitration agreements on...
In an effort to keep employees, customers, clients, and others safe, businesses are considering whether to require their workforces to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Vaccination policies play a crucial role in...
Newspaper carriers classified as independent contractors sued the McClatchy Company for unfair competition based on a failure to reimburse them for business expenses under Labor Code Section 2802. After a bench trial...
California employers should be aware of new employment laws that will take effect January 1, 2022, including new laws that will (1) further expand the scope of the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), (2) clarify the...
In both public and private sectors in California, full and fair investigations into alleged wrongdoing are imperative—particularly in cases of alleged harassment and discrimination. In such investigations, there is a...
The California Court of Appeal recently confirmed that trial courts have inherent authority to ensure Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (PAGA) claims will be manageable at trial and to strike claims if they can't be...
California has an all-purpose, wraparound statute prohibiting arbitrary discrimination of any kind: Civil Code Section 51, or the Unruh Act. In the following case, the court found lending practices that discriminated...
Before a plaintiff can file a lawsuit claiming a violation of California's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), she must first file an administrative charge before the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH)...
Rules on when and where citizens can use marijuana vary significantly between jurisdictions, and no unifying federal guidance is in sight. So, how do employers, particularly those in multiple states, deal with the dope...
As the delta variant spreads and positive COVID-19 cases continue to pop up, employers are questioning their policies yet again. Understandably, many of you are concerned about keeping workers safe and maintaining...
Many employers must face disputed discrimination charges followed by a retaliation claim based on the initial bias complaint. Just because the underlying discrimination claim is found to be without merit doesn't...
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently released new educational resources explaining employees’ right to be free from sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination in employment. How we got...
In April 2020, the Minnesota Court of Appeals found an existing rule requiring workers to be employed for a year before seeking parental leave doesn't apply to pregnant employees pursuing on-the-job accommodations (see...