Tag: california hr

Youth Workers: Stricter Child Labor Rules May Be on the Way

The U.S. Department of Labor has announced that it intends to make big changes to child labor provisions of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. The DOL has released a proposal that would strengthen existing youth employment regulations to protect against workplace hazards and expand certain youth workplace opportunities that have been judged safe and […]

Employment Law Tip: Practical Tips to Avoid Race Claims

Last year, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission received over 27,000 race discrimination complaints, a good indication that employers should be paying closer attention to how they can avoid race bias disputes in their own workplaces. Here are some practical tips you can use: 

Immigration: H-1B Petition Cap Quickly Reached

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that by the afternoon of April 2, 2007, it had received enough H-1B work visa petitions—150,000—to meet the congressionally mandated cap for fiscal year 2008. April 2 was the first day employers could submit H-1B petitions for 2008. The H-1B visa program allows U.S. businesses to employ […]

Wage and Hour: Important Meal Period Ruling from California Supreme Court

The California Supreme Court has handed down an important new decision, answering a wage and hour question that recently has plagued the state’s appeals courts: Is the required payment of “one additional hour of pay at the employee’s regular rate of compensation” for each day that an employer fails to provide mandatory meal or rest […]

Health Insurance: HIPAA Privacy Notice Reminder for Small Health Plans

Under the privacy rule of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), group health plans must remind participants every three years that a privacy rights notice is available on request. For small health plans (those with $5 million or less in annual receipts), the three-year anniversary date is April 14, 2007. The anniversary date […]

Computers: Ninth Circuit Reconsiders Computer Privacy Ruling; the Importance of Having a Monitoring Policy

Last year, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers California, ruled that employees cannot expect privacy when using workplace computers if their employer has an electronic monitoring policy in place. But now, the Ninth Circuit has revisited that ruling—this time finding that the employee indeed had an expectation of privacy for the computer […]

Employment Law Tip: Protecting Teens from Workplace Harassment

Do you employ teenage workers? If so, it’s important to take a look at what you can do to ensure young people are safe from workplace harassment and know how to report problems that do occur. Here are some tips from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on preventing harassment and discrimination involving young workers: