STEM Extensions Increased From 17 Months To 24 Months! Effective May 10, 2016, the STEM Extension OPT program has been expanded to extend the length of the STEM Extension from 17 months to 24 months. STEM OPT Extensions are available to students who completed a degree in the science, technology, engineering, or mathematics fields at…
Continue reading ›The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) has issued an “FAQ for Employers” on transgender rights in the workplace. Among other things, the FAQ provides: Employers should not ask questions designed to detect a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity or questions about an employee’s plans to have surgery. If an employer has…
Continue reading ›If you ever wanted to get back at your employer by reporting it to the Labor Department for their illegal employment practices, there is something better you can do and get paid for doing it! California adopted a novel approach to enforcing the Labor Code of California when it enacted the Private Attorney General Act…
Continue reading ›In a recent Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal opinion, the Court in Oregon Restaurant and Lodging Association v. Perez (9th Cir. 2/23/16) revisited tip pooling under the Federal Labor Standards Act. The Court explained, Under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (“FLSA”), as amended in 1974, an employer may fulfill part of its hourly…
Continue reading ›The Court of Appeal in USS-POSCO Industries v. Case (Cal.App. 1/26/16) recently held that an employer may require an employee to repay education expenses. In this case, the Defendant employee voluntarily enrolled in a three-year, employer-sponsored educational program. He agreed in writing that if he quit his job within 30 months of completing the program,…
Continue reading ›An employer that hosts a company party where alcohol is served can be liable for the injuries a drunken employee causes. In a recent unpublished case, Purton v. Marriott International, an employee attended a company party, got drunk, and then drove home. After safely arriving at his home, he then drove another coworker home. During…
Continue reading ›Congress may move quickly to overhaul a program that allows travel to the U.S. with no visa, something that has come under criticism following the Paris terror attacks. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy told reporters Monday that he was looking at action before the end of the year. Without legislation “I think the country will…
Continue reading ›Governor Brown signs new Equal Pay Law The California Legislature has turned its attention to anti-discrimination law: equal pay. Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 358 into law and becomes effective January 1, 2016. The text of the new law and a summary of the changes in the law already in place is below: 1197.5. (a)…
Continue reading ›On July 15, 2015, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued Administrators Interpretation 2015-1: “Application of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s ‘Suffer or Permit’ Standard in the Identification of Employees Who Are Misclassified as Independent Contractors.” The Interpretation’s stated goal is to provide “guidance regarding the application of the standards for…
Continue reading ›New Law: Requesting Accommodation Is Protected Activity Under the FEHA In Rope v. Auto-Clor System of Washington, Inc. (2013) 220 Cal.App.4th 635 (discussed here), the plaintiff sued his former employer, alleging that it violated the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) by firing him after he requested leave from work to donate a kidney to…
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