Sexual Harassment Training is Available—and Required by Law

January 1, 2020 is right around the corner.  If you are an employer with five or more employees in California, you must provide at least two hours of classroom or other effective interactive training and education regarding sexual harassment to all supervisory employees.  All nonsupervisory employees must receive at least one hour of classroom or other effective interactive training about … Read More

Employment Arbitration Agreements May Be Shown the Door

If the Governor signs AB 3080, 2019 will usher in a new era for employees in California.  Initially intended to address “lawyer tactics” in response to workplace sexual harassment claims, the bill (1) makes it unlawful to require arbitration agreements as a condition of employment (and to retaliate against an employee who does not agree to arbitration) and (2) limits … Read More

California Cannabis Unions

The passage of California’s Senate Bill 643 established a comprehensive licensing and regulatory framework for the cultivation, manufacture, transportation, storage, distribution, and sale of medical cannabis.  The new law provides that all state commercial cannabis applicants or licensees with 20 employees or more (not counting some management) must operate under a Labor Peace Agreement (“LPA”).  This requirement includes all types … Read More

Marijuana in the Workplace

With the passage of Proposition 64, the “Adult Use of Marijuana Act,” employers may have some concern about whether the new law affects their right to enforce drug-free workplace policies.  While employers should always make employment decisions with great care, the Act clearly preserves the rights of private employers to maintain drug free workplaces.  The actual language for that preservation … Read More

California’s 2017 Minimum Wage Increase

Attention Humboldt County employers:  California’s most recent version of the minimum wage poster, MW-2017, which includes the January 1, 2017 minimum wage increase, must be posted in your workplace. Copies of the poster can be found here(link is external).

New Unisex Bathroom Requirements Effective March 1

Beginning March 1, 2017, all single-user restroom facilities in California businesses, public accommodations, and state and local government agencies, must be designated as all-gender facilities, accessible to all people, regardless of gender. “Single-user toilet facilities” include all bathrooms that contain, at the most, one toilet and one urinal, and a lock that is controlled by the user. The new law … Read More

Unpaid Internships

When is it permissible to hire an unpaid intern and when should an intern be paid as an employee? To answer this question, one must evaluate the work the intern performs, how such work impacts the company and the intern, and what supervision and training the intern receives. Both the California DLSE and the Federal Department of Labor use a six … Read More

Exempt Employee Minimum Salary Increases for 2017

Humboldt County employers must remember that with California’s minimum wage increase on January 1, 2017, the corresponding base minimum annual salary to qualify any employee as exempt from overtime has a corresponding increase.  As always, to qualify for exempt status, employees must make at least twice the minimum wage on an annual basis.  If you have any questions about whether … Read More

Minimum Wage and Exempt Status Require Review in 2017

A reminder to all Humboldt County employers, as of January 1, 2017 the minimum wage for all employers with 25 or fewer employees is $10 per hour and $10.50 per hour for all employers with 26 or more employees.  The minimum salary thresholds for all exempt employees are also increasing.  Check to make sure that all of your current exempt … Read More

“More Money, More Problems”—The New Theme Song at the DOL

A new federal overtime rule from the Department of Labor was set to take effect on December 1, 2016.  The rule doubles the current federal salary that must be made by an employee before the employee can be classified as exempt from overtime—known as the executive, administrative and professional exemptions.  The new rule requires a minimum salary of $913 per … Read More