Undocumented Worker Not Barred from Asserting Discrimination Claims
In Salas v. Sierra Chemical Co., No. S196568 (Cal. June 26, 2014), the California Supreme Court has ruled that federal immigration law did not preempt California law extending employee protections and...
View ArticleCalifornia Law Protects Unpaid Interns and Volunteers from Harassment and...
California has become the third state in the country, after New York and Oregon, to ban sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace directed toward unpaid interns. The new law (AB 1443)...
View ArticleReasonable Accommodation’s Mandate in Employment Statute Does Not Require...
On January 21, 2015, a California Appeals Court affirmed the trial court’s ruling in Nealy v. City of Santa Monica, 2015 Cal. App. LEXIS 139 (February 13, 2015) granting summary judgment for the City...
View ArticleRemoving Essential Job Functions Not Reasonable Disability Accommodation...
Affirming summary judgment in favor of an employer on an employee’s disability discrimination claims under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”), the California Court of Appeal has...
View ArticleNo Employer Liability If There is No Actionable Harassment or Discrimination,...
An employer cannot be held liable for failure to prevent sexual harassment under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”) if there is no actionable sexual harassment, the California...
View ArticleCalifornia Appeals Court Affirms that Employee Signature Acknowledging Clear...
In a recent opinion affirming an arbitrator’s judgment in favor of an employer on various employment law claims, the California Court of Appeal held that an employee agreed to arbitrate all claims...
View ArticleBe Careful What You Say—It Might End Up in a Declaration to Defeat Summary...
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently reversed summary judgment for an employer, finding that a former employee’s self-serving declaration and deposition testimony regarding alleged disability...
View Article“No Re-Hire” Clauses May Be Unlawful Restraints of Trade
When settling employment disputes, employers and employees often seek to go their separate ways and avoid crossing paths in the future. Settlement agreements often include a “No Re-Hire” clause in...
View ArticleAn Employee’s Request for a Disability or Religious Accommodation Is...
Effective January 1, 2016, an employee’s request for an accommodation for a disability or for religious reasons is considered to be “protected activity” for a retaliation claim under the Fair...
View ArticleReversing $1 Million Judgment against Los Angeles, the California Court of...
The California Court of Appeal reversed a $1 million judgment against the City of Los Angeles in a racial discrimination, harassment and retaliation case brought by a firefighter under the California...
View ArticleNew California Regulations on Workplace Anti-Harassment, Anti-Discrimination...
New California regulations declaring that “[e]mployers have an affirmative duty to create a workplace environment that is free from employment practices prohibited by” the California Fair Employment...
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Obesity Discrimination Claims Allowed to Proceed Under California Law
Is obesity a disability under California law? Are a supervisor’s alleged “fat remarks” sufficient evidence of disability discrimination? On December 21, 2017, a California Appellate Court published an...
View ArticleCalifornia First State to Clarify Definition of Race Discrimination to...
In an important step for California, Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 188 into law on July 3, 2019. SB 188 or also known as, the CROWN ACT, “Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair,”...
View ArticleIs “Cannabis User” the Next Protected Class in California?
Years after California legalized recreational use of cannabis, employers continue to struggle with determining their rights and liabilities regarding employees who engage in that activity. In 2016, a...
View ArticleU.S. Supreme Court Hears Argument on Whether ‘Ministerial Exception’ Covers...
Whether the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses prevent civil courts from adjudicating employment discrimination claims brought by employees against their religious employer, where the employee...
View ArticleStarting the Signing-of-Bills Small with AB 3364
On August 31st, the California legislature closed its 2019 – 2020 session with the Assembly and Senate passing over 35 employment-related bills. However, thus far, the only employment-related bill the...
View ArticleCalifornia Supreme Court Cases Employers Should Watch In 2021
While the California courts were relatively quiet during 2020, the California Supreme Court has a few heavy-hitting employment cases pending for 2021. Here are the cases employers should be watching in...
View ArticlePatchwork of Pay Transparency Laws Continues to Evolve
State legislatures continue to pass laws designed to enhance pay equity and transparency, with the laws of California and Colorado effective in 2021. The California law requires employee pay data...
View ArticleAn Employee’s Request for a Disability or Religious Accommodation Is...
Effective January 1, 2016, an employee’s request for an accommodation for a disability or for religious reasons is considered to be “protected activity” for a retaliation claim under the Fair...
View ArticleReversing $1 Million Judgment against Los Angeles, the California Court of...
The California Court of Appeal reversed a $1 million judgment against the City of Los Angeles in a racial discrimination, harassment and retaliation case brought by a firefighter under the California...
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