Tag: california hr

FEHC Back to Work on A.B. 1825 Regulation

For over a year now, the California Fair Employment and Housing Commission (FEHC) has been drafting regulations to implement California’s sexual harassment training law, A.B. 1825. In December, the FEHC finally submitted the draft regulations to the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) for approval, and it looked like the regulations might take effect this month.

New Avian Flu Planning Guidance from OSHA

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 […]

Wal-Mart Loses Class Action Certification Challenge in Huge Case

Last week, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s ruling that granted class-action status to a lawsuit—the largest civil rights suit in history—accusing Wal-Mart of sex discrimination in pay and promotions. The class is estimated to consist of up to 1.6 million current and former female employees of Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart unsuccessfully […]

Congress Moving on Federal Minimum Wage Hike

We recently reported that the U.S. House of Representatives had approved a bill to increase the federal minimum wage to $7.25 over a period of 26 months. Now, the Senate has approved similar legislation, which, unlike the House measure, would provide tax breaks to small businesses to offset the economic impact of paying a higher […]

Cell Phones: What If an Employee Gets in an Accident While Doing Business on Your Cell? February

Although I gather it’s not illegal yet to talk on a handheld cell phone while driving, I’ve been hearing about some situations in which the company was held liable for accidents when the employee was doing business on the cell phone while driving. Even while driving to a ball game with the kids and taking […]