Author: Oregon Employment Law Letter

IT

New Oregon data security law takes effect January 1

by Joanna Perini-Abbott Oregon’s expanded data breach law will take effect January 1, making two significant changes to the old law—a notification requirement and a change in the definition of “personal information.”  Like the old law, the new law requires businesses that maintain personal information digitally, including information about employees, to notify Oregon residents whose […]

You’re hired? U.S.A., Inc., eyes Trump for CEO

by Kylie Crawford TenBrook Let’s say—hypothetically—you are conducting a search for your next CEO. One résumé in particular has caught your eye. The candidate’s qualifications include managing a real estate empire worth billions and owning a marginally successful enterprise whose business model is founded on judging women by their looks.  Wanting to know more, you […]

California school activities leave expansion starts January 1

by Cathleen S. Yonahara California’s law allowing unpaid time off for employees to participate in their children’s school or daycare activities will be expanded effective January 1. Current law requires employers with 25 or more employees to provide unpaid leave to employees who are a parent, guardian, or grandparent with custody of one or more […]

Change someone’s life with an unexpected gift this holiday season

by Dan Oswald Christmas is less than two weeks away. And as the carol goes, ’tis the season to be jolly. But it’s also the season of giving. Gift giving has long been a tradition associated with Christmas. Whether or not you still believe in Santa Claus, everyone likes to receive gifts. Nothing warms the […]

B.C. Court of Appeal addresses termination and severance issues

by Kevin O’Neill, Q.C. In Canada, in Hall v. Quicksilver Resources Canada Inc., 2015 BCCA 291, the British Columbia Court of Appeal addressed two important termination and severance issues: 1. In the sale of a business, when and how do an employee’s years of service continue to bind the purchaser? 2. What is the proper […]

Bloodline: We did a bad thing

“We’re not bad people, but we did a bad thing.” This is the tagline for the Netflix original thriller-drama Bloodline. If you haven’t seen it, run to add it to your watch list immediately. The show takes us into the lives of the Rayburn family, owners of a picturesque beachside hotel in the Florida Keys. Despite the […]

What to say when CEO says don’t bother creating an employee handbook

Most human resources professionals understand the importance of a carefully written employee handbook. But sometimes the higher-ups in an organization don’t think about why such a document is advisable. Recently, a group of attorneys from the Employers Counsel Network, which focuses on employment law issues, was asked what to do when a CEO says a […]

End of 2015 marks beginning of New York’s fast-food wage increases

by Angelo D. Catalano The first of a series of minimum wage increases for fast-food workers in New York is set to begin on December 31.  The increases survived a challenge from the National Restaurant Association when the New York Industrial Board of Appeals decided on December 9 that the state’s action to raise wages […]

New Orleans Living Wage Ordinance takes effect January 1

by P.J. Kee Employers doing business with the city of New Orleans must pay employees at least $10.10 per hour and provide them at least seven days of paid leave per year after the city’s living wage law takes effect January 1. The ordinance applies to city contractors, subcontractors, and grant recipients. A “contractor” is […]

New law removes ‘alien’ from California Labor Code

by Elizabeth J. Boca A California law taking effect on January 1 removes the word “alien” from the state’s Labor Code. The new law deletes two sections of the Labor Code as a way of modernizing and removing negative connotations in the law. In 1937, the California Legislature enacted various provisions regarding the employment of […]