Is that legal? Q: I AM a college graduate in business management from the Philippines who migrated to the United States. I got work as a caregiver at a nursing facility. After a few years, I was promoted to a supervisor position: still providing direct care but also overseeing other caregivers. The patients and my…
Why your written notices to employer can better protect you Q: I got along great with my former boss, but I could sense our new manager didn’t like me from her first day. When I was out sick in March, she re-assigned one of my biggest tasks to another employee. After I complained, she adjusted…
Q: Our employee handbook says we’re supposed to get meal breaks before the end of the 5th hour of our shift, but work gets so busy that I don’t have a chance to clock out to eat until the 6th or 7th hour. During our busiest times, it’s normal to go the whole day without…
Q: I worked in a company for over 10 years. A new supervisor and I do not get along. Last week, the company terminated me without any explanation. I do not have any disciplinary record. Can my employer just fire me without a good reason? A: Yes, an employer may fire an employee without a…
When job termination can give rise to employee’s legal action Q: I’m an account executive at a real estate company. I enjoy the work and I’m good at it. But I started having problems when I went on maternity leave, my boss gave the majority of my best accounts to male colleagues on my team….
Wallen Lawson worked as a territory manager for two years for PPG Architectural Finishes, Inc. (PPG), a paint manufacturer. Lawson sold and stocked PPG paint products in Lowe’s home improvement stores in Southern California. PPG used two metrics to evaluate Lawson’s performance: his ability to meet sales goals, and his rapport with Lowe’s staff and…
Looking closely at your time records Some employers do not pay for a “few minutes” of time worked by employees before or after their schedules. Five or ten minutes of work before or after the scheduled start and end of work schedule are not paid. The practice is called rounding down of employees’ clock-in and…
When an employee quits from work, the employer must pay all wages due within 72 hours, unless the employee has given 72-hour previous notice in which case payment shall be made at the time of quitting. Upon discharge, wages are due upon discharge. “Wages” include regular wages, overtime, and payments for missed meal and rest…
Q: WHILE driving back to the office from a work errand for my Manager, my car was rear ended. I sustained injuries as a result of which I underwent surgeries. I missed work for weeks but will need more time off for treatments. I am afraid to tell my employer about my need for more…
Do threats constitute human trafficking or forced labor? Q: I WAS petitioned by my current employer to work in a residential care facility in the US. I work 6 days a week, and often on a 10-12 hour shift each day, but my employer does not pay overtime. When I asked for additional payment, my…
Jane Doe worked in the office of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). She and another CDCR employee who worked in the same location, Correctional Officer Luis Serna, became sexually involved. Serna recorded their sexual encounter at her home. He then disclosed the video to their co-workers, and eventually, to others outside of…
Employees lose wages when employers round down or shave work hours Moises Negrete worked at Conagra Foods, Inc.’s food processing facilities located all over California. Moises and other workers sued their employer in a class action, alleging failure to provide them lawful meal and rest periods but automatically deducting time for meal periods, even when…
Q: MY co-workers and I have been having an issue getting our paychecks on time from our manager. Sometimes we would go more than a month without getting paid, which I know is illegal. When the Regional Manager—our manager’s boss—came to visit, I took the opportunity to let him know about the late paychecks. I…
The US Supreme Court recently highlighted the importance of overtime laws. In eliminating “oppressive working hours”, it sought to ensure that employees are properly compensated for “the burden of working extra-long hours.” The Court ruled that daily-rate employees must be paid overtime, as wages based on a daily rate does not qualify as a “salary”…
Employer pays $58.5 Million settlement for wage-statement violations Like many other employees, you may usually just file away the pay stubs you receive from your employer, biweekly or twice a month, without even reviewing them. But there is much more to these pay stubs—or wage statements—than you may realize. California’s Labor Code requires that these…
$75 million employer payout for class of insurance agents Irene Parry and Jeanette O’Sullivan worked as captive insurance agents for Farmers. They sold insurance products in California on behalf of Farmers and its affiliated companies. Under Farmers’ Agents Appointment Agreement (“AAA”), which Parry and O’Sullivan—and other agents like them—were made to sign, the insurance agents…
Employer pays $58.5 Million settlement for wage-statement violations Like many other employees, you may usually just file away the pay stubs you receive from your employer, biweekly or twice a month, without even reviewing them. But there is much more to these pay stubs—or wage statements—than you may realize. California’s Labor Code requires that these…
Q: MY wife and I are having a baby. My wife has scheduled to go on maternity leave. Somebody mentioned to her about bonding leave for new dads. However, I heard from a friend at work that our company doesn’t give paternity leave. He told me that a guy in another department went on leave…
Some salaried employees in California, including a category of relatively higher-paid workers, may be entitled to pay increases because of minimum-wage increases that went into effect this year. In 2017, the California Legislature enacted a new minimum-wage law aimed at raising the statutorily-mandated minimum wage from $10 per hour to $15 per hour. The increase…
A new law in California has guaranteed bereavement leave to all California employees. California’s Assembly Bill 1949 (A.B. 1949) went into effect this year, and makes it unlawful for an employer “to refuse to grant a request by any employee to take up to five days of bereavement leave upon the death of a family…
Q: I previously worked as a clerk in a large office. I used to like working there, but recently my manager made me so miserable at work. It started when I requested time off to have a contraceptive implant. I had mentioned it to a colleague and I’m guessing she told my manager, who told…
THE COVID-19 pandemic caused significant business disruptions. However, numerous businesses have been denied insurance relief for the losses they incurred. Some have turned to the courts for help only to again be denied. But in a recent victory for the insured, the California Court of Appeals found that a popular San Francisco restaurant, John’s Grill,…
Q: I was fired from work last week and another co-worker also quit at around the same time. Our employer told us both to sign an “exit form” and a “release.” We were told that we would not get our final paycheck if we do not sign these documents. Is this legal? A: If an…
Q: MY co-workers and I are having problems not getting our meal breaks at work. We work 12-hour shifts, and the handbook says we’re supposed to get 2 meal breaks. The employer had each of us sign a waiver giving up one of our meal breaks when we were hired. But it’s hard to even…
Years ago, my firm represented an employee who was fired after he got a permanent partial disability due to a workplace injury. The employer reasoned that he was a potential “liability” because he could not fully meet all the physical requirements of his sales job, even though the employee had never been asked to perform…
Q: I feel I am being harassed at work and my manager is not doing enough to stop it. My manager is calling asking me to come back, but I’m afraid I will have a mental breakdown if I do. I work in a residential rehab facility. One of the patients keeps asking me to…
Q: I WORKED as a caregiver in a nursing home. I complained to my manager that the owner’s husband was sexually harassing me, but she told me I was overreacting and told me I should be thankful I have a job. When I complained again after the owner’s husband touched me inappropriately, the manager called…
Q: I worked as a caregiver in a nursing home. I complained to my manager that the owner’s husband was sexually harassing me, but she told me I was overreacting and told me I should be thankful I have a job. When I complained again after the owner’s husband touched me inappropriately, the manager called…
THE State of California, in partnership with various counties throughout the state, administers an In-Home Supportive Services (“IHSS”) program to allow low-income elderly, blind, or disabled individuals to hire a caregiver to help them with daily activities, such as housework, meal preparation, and personal care. The recipients of IHSS assistance retain the right to hire,…
FOUR female Google employees believed it was unfair that male colleagues with similar qualifications were consistently paid more than them and other female counterparts. This week, the San Francisco Superior Court approved an $118 million payment by Google to settle the discrimination claims of approximately 16,000 women. The class action lawsuit was brought under California’s…
