Employers often ask me the question of what steps can they take to stop employment litigation. My response usually begins with a warning that there is nothing an employer can do that will prevent a frivolous lawsuit. Employers can only control their actions and decisions, and by thinking about and reviewing a few simple items
Five legally required items often overlooked by California employers
Welcome to Friday’s 5, a series of posts each Friday of lists of five items in various aspect of California employment law. I hope to keep it informative and interesting, and provide a checklist of sorts for California employers to review various practices and policies. Starting off, here is a list of five items not
Introducing Friday’s 5 Best Practices for California Employers
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know, I’m the first one to admit things have been pretty dormant here at the California Employment Law Report. It is actually a good sign of my growing practice, but with the increasing list of employers I’ve been advising, the less time I’ve had to write articles and conduct webinars. This will be changing
Are electronic signatures valid in the employment setting?
Generally, yes, and surprisingly this is one area that legislation is well ahead of the general 
adoption of the technical capabilities available in the marketplace. For example, in 1999 the California Legislature enacted the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (the “UETA”), Civ. Code, §§ 1633.1 et seq., which provides that when a law requires a record
Top Five Items California Employers Need To Know About Tips
1) Who owns a tip?
California law is clear that voluntary tips left for an employee for goods sold or services performed belong to the employee, not the employer. Labor Code section 351 provides, “No Employer or agent shall collect, take or receive any gratuity or a part thereof that is paid, given to, or
Can employers use employee’s posts to social media as basis for employment decisions or would this violate an employee’s right to privacy?
Generally, employees have a privacy expectation in their personnel files, contact information, and work related information. However, this expectation of privacy is not limitless, especially when the employee publically airs his or her work experiences on social media sites for the public to see. Courts have held that employees can waive this right to privacy
Court upholds company’s classification of worker as an independent contractor in Beaumont-Jacques v. Farmers Group
The new decision in Beaumont-Jacques v. Farmers Group examines the test in determining a worker’s independent contractor status. In applying the “economic realities” test set forth by the California Supreme Court in S.G. Borello & Sons, Inc. v. Dept. of Industrial Relations, the Court focused on whether the worker had “meaningful discretion with reference
7 Items A Company Needs To Do After Being Sued In A Wage And Hour Class Action
Being named as a defendant in a class action lawsuit can be overwhelming, especially for a quickly growing company. However, with planning, a company can minimize the impact of the litigation on its existing operations and put forth the best defense. Here are seven items a company can do as part of this planning process
Finding the Next Steve Jobs – Nolan Bushnell
Who was the first person to recognize Steve Jobs’ potential and offer him a job? It was Nolan Bushnell. By the way, Bushnell is also the founder of Atari, co-inventor of the video game Pong, founder of Chuck E. Cheese, and is a serial entrepreneur. Given Bushnell’s track record in business, and having the badge
5 compliance issues California employers need to audit at least once a year
Your company has updated its employee handbook, but the work 
is not over in California. Here are a few reminders of additional steps employers should review after conducting a handbook update and on a periodic basis. Of course this list is not comprehensive, but it comprises of a few items that sometimes take a backseat