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The state Industrial Welfare Commission has approved a 50-cent increase in the minimum wage to $6.25 per hour, effective Jan. 1, 2001. Another 50-cent increase will take effect Jan. 1, 2002, boosting the hourly minimum to $6.75. The change will also raise the minimum monthly salary that must be earned to qualify as exempt employees. […]
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released comprehensive new guidance for employers on how to prepare for an avian flu outbreak. The new guidance, which OSHA developed in conjunction with the Department of Health and Human Services, provides guidance for all types of workplaces, describes the differences between seasonal, avian, and pandemic […]
Wage and hour investigations are often the result of a complaint filed by an employee or former employee. But sometimes the U.S. Department of Labor, or a state agency, targets specific industries for audits. During an investigation, the DOL will visit the business and gather data on wages, hours, and other employment conditions or practices. […]
Once DOL finalizes these rules, employers will have six months to implement new COBRA procedures. As soon as the new rules are released we will detail what you’ll need to do to implement the changes.
Several African-American employees at the Naval Aviation Depot North Island in San Diego sued their employer, claiming that African-American employees at the NADNI were denied promotions over a several-year period. The Ninth Circuit said the employees couldn’t sue over many of the promotions because the employees had failed to file complaints about those promotions within […]
Charles Sinatra, a long-time assistant principal with the Chico Unified School District, sued for wrongful termination in violation of public policy when the district refused his request for transfer to a part-time administrative position, instead giving him a full-time teaching assignment. He claimed he was “forced” to quit for exercising his statutory right under […]
The number of California workers killed on the job in 2000 was the lowest since 1992, when the state first published such data. Preliminary figures from the California Department of Industrial Relations show there were 553 deaths in 2000, down from 644 a decade ago. Over 41% of the total deaths resulted from transportation accidents, […]
As of July 1, 2003, a new law will require California businesses to disclose security breaches of computerized personal data. You will have to inform a California resident when you have a reasonable belief there’s been unauthorized access to their unencrypted personal information i.e., the person’s first name or initial and last name, in combination […]
In what could be another economic blow to California employers, the actuarial committee of the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Ratings Bureau is recommending a midyear increase of 11 percent to the pure premium rate. This recommendation follows on the heels of 10.5 percent increase that took effect on January 1, 2003. Note that the pure premium […]
At the 11th hour, a joint committee of the state Assembly passed a bill that is intended to reign in the increasing costs of workers’ compensation. Although it remains to be seen whether the measure will achieve the projected up-front savings of $5.3 billion and annual savings of about $5 billion, the changes are far-reaching […]