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Big Lots Inc. has signed off on a $10 million settlement of a lawsuit charging that more than 1,400 managers and assistant managers at the Ohio-based retailer’s California discount stores, including Pic ‘N’ Save and MacFrugals, were misclassified as exempt. The employees charged they spent the bulk of their time performing nonmanagerial tasks such as […]
San Diego police officer John Roe claimed his free speech rights were violated when he was fired for selling sexually explicit videos of himself on the Internet. The Ninth Circuit explained that a public employee’s speech is protected and cannot be abridged without good cause when it touches on a matter of “public concern” rather […]
A new study by Mellon Financial Corp. reveals that 81 percent of employers offer employee assistance programs, up from 70 percent in 1996, and 54 percent provide family sick days, up from 42 percent. Although only 6 percent of employers offered domestic partner benefits seven years ago, 35 percent of employers do now. The study […]
As online recruiting has rapidly accelerated in the past decade, employers have grappled with whether they have to consider every single resume that comes in as an application, even if it wasn’t submitted for a specific job opening. Now the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has released proposed new recordkeeping guidance clarifying who is […]
The California Supreme Court has ruled that a Catholic charity doesn’t qualify as a “religious employer” and therefore must comply with the Women’s Contraception Equity Act (WCEA) by offering prescription contraception coverage in its employee health plan if it offers prescription drug coverage—even if the organization opposes contraceptives on religious grounds. This ruling could impact […]
These new figures lower the benefits cost estimates, based in part on savings from last year’s reforms and AB 749. In other workers’ compensation reform news, Gov. Schwarzenegger continues to press the assembly for action by threatening a January ballot initiative to take the issue of workers’ comp reform to the voters.
On April 14, employers with small health plans must be in compliance with HIPAA privacy rules. If you aren’t yet in compliance, you must take steps immediately to avoid potential fines and criminal penalties.
For employers who have had to deal with hard economic times these past few years, there’s a bit of good news: a California appeal court has rejected an employee’s plea for workers’ compensation benefits stemming from stress over the employer’s poor financial situation and downsizing.
Every year, thousands of forklift-related injuries occur in the United States. According to the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), these injuries are often attributed to a lack of safe operating procedures and safety rule enforcement as well as insufficient training.
Do you know when you’re required to provide employees with meal and rest breaks? Are you following the rules? If not, you could be headed toward an expensive legal battle. And a recent spate of wage and hour lawsuits charging employers with violating meal and rest break provisions is focusing attention on these rules.