On January 1, 2025, the statewide minimum wage increased to $16.50 per hour. With the change in the statewide minimum wage, the minimum exempt salary for California employees rose from $66,560 to $68,640 per year.Continue Reading California Minimum Wage Increases
California’s Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA)[1] allows “aggrieved employees” to sue their employers for Labor Code violations to collect civil penalties “on behalf of himself or herself and other current or former employees.” The issue of how to resolve PAGA claims where the employee and employer are subject to a binding arbitration agreement has been hotly contested over the last several years, as reported many times in this blog [see here, here, and here].Continue Reading PAGA Plaintiffs Cannot Avoid Arbitration by Bringing a “Headless PAGA Lawsuit”
As Los Angeles (the “City”) grapples with the impacts of the devastating wildfires, employers are facing critical decisions about protecting their workforce while maintaining operations. While Cal/OSHA recently urged employers to protect workers from unhealthy air in Los Angeles County, this article will provide further insight on a variety of the complex legal obligations California employers must navigate during wildfire and other natural disaster emergencies.Continue Reading Navigating Employer Obligations During California’s Wildfire Disasters
Today, in the matter of E.M.D. Sales, Inc. v. Carrera, the United States Supreme Court held that employers must not meet a heightened standard of proof when defending claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The decision is a victory for employers defending FLSA actions across the country.Continue Reading SCOTUS Hands Big Win to Employers Defending FLSA Claims
In less than two months, Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 47th President of the United States. President-elect Trump has already announced that he will nominate Republican Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer as his pick to serve as the next Secretary of the Department of Labor (“DOL”). It remains to be seen if the Trump DOL will continue the current administration’s targeting of the healthcare industry.Continue Reading Will the Trump Labor Department Continue the Current Sharp Focus on the Healthcare Industry?
On November 15th, Judge Sean Jordan of the Eastern District of Texas halted a 2024 Department of Labor (“DOL”) Final Rule (“2024 Rule”) that massively increased salary requirements for employees classified as “exempt” from the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). If implemented, the 2024 Rule would have reclassified untold millions of employees as “non-exempt” from the FLSA—making them eligible for overtime pay. Judge Jordan’s sweeping, 62-page ruling vacated the 2024 Rule nationally for all employers. While the DOL may appeal, it is unlikely the forthcoming Trump administration will defend the 2024 Rule. Judge Jordan’s ruling is a massive win for employers everywhere and leaves questions about the scope of the DOL’s authority to increase salary thresholds for FLSA exemptions moving forward.Continue Reading It’s Over for Overtime Expansion: Texas Court Axes DOL Rule That Would Have Reclassified Millions of Employees as Overtime Eligible
Two recent decisions from the California Courts of Appeal could have massive ramifications for employers seeking to enforce arbitration agreements. Specifically, each court each held that the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Harassment Act (“EFAA”) prohibits separating and arbitrating wage and hour claims that are part of the same suit as a sexual harassment claim. These holdings give plaintiffs’ lawyers a new tool try and defeat arbitration agreements and keep cases in litigation. Accordingly, California employers should be prepared for an influx of sexual harassment claims being tacked on to otherwise unrelated wage and hour lawsuits.Continue Reading California Courts Greatly Expand Scope of “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Harassment Act”
As we previously reported here, nearly all health care facilities in California will soon be required to increase the minimum wage paid to health care workers, ranging anywhere from $18 per hour up to $23 per hour depending on the type of health care facility. The increased health care minimum wage was set to go into effect on June 1, 2024; however, on May 31, 2024, Governor Newsom signed SB 828, which provided for a one month delay, to July 1, 2024. Now, there is a further delay after Governor Newsom and state legislators came to an agreement to delay implementation of the increased health care minimum wage until October 15, 2024 (possibly until January 1, 2025) upon passage of AB 159.Continue Reading Delay In California’s Minimum Wage Increase for Health Care Workers
On August 1, 2024, the California Supreme Court issued a decision in Turrieta v. Lyft that substantially narrows the authority of PAGA litigants to intervene in overlapping PAGA actions. The Supreme Court’s ruling confirms that the courts and the Labor & Workforce Development Agency (“LWDA”) – and not competing PAGA litigants – have primary responsibility for providing oversight of PAGA settlements.Continue Reading Intervening Authority: California Supreme Court Curbs the Authority of PAGA Litigants to Intervene in Overlapping PAGA Actions
As previously discussed, on June 18, 2024, California’s political leaders announced a tentative deal to reform a number of aspects of California’s Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”). On June 27, 2024, the PAGA reform bills, Senate Bill 92 and Assembly Bill 2288, were approved by the California Legislature and on July 1, 2024, Governor Newsom signed both bills into law. The PAGA reform bills contain urgency clauses such that the bills take effect upon signing. Both bills explicitly apply only to PAGA claims filed on or after June 19, 2024, or those PAGA claims for which the required notice to California’s Labor Workforce Development Agency (“LWDA”) was filed on or after June 19, 2024. The PAGA reform bills add details to the previously announced key reform components of increased employee share of PAGA penalties, caps on penalties for employers who take steps to comply with the Labor Code or fix potential issues after receiving notice of a PAGA claim, and requiring the representative plaintiff to experience every alleged PAGA violation to have standing. These reform bills are likely to curb, but not eliminate PAGA litigation for California employers going forward.Continue Reading A Closer Look: Unpacking California’s Landmark PAGA Legislation
The Supreme Court will soon hear a wage and hour case with massive implications for employers defending claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). Depending on the outcome, the high court’s decision could make it far more difficult for employers to prove a plaintiff/employee is exempt from the FLSA’s minimum wage and overtime requirements. Continue Reading New SCOTUS Case Could Make Fair Labor Standards Act Claims More Difficult for Employers to Defend