California Legal Blog – A Deep Dive Into Issues That Affect Your Life

What is the legal definition of "harassment" in California?Watch this video on YouTube There are four primary types of harassment, each with its own meaning under California law: civil (non-workplace) harassment, stalking, sexual harassment, and non-sexual harassment. In broad terms, each of these types of harassment involves unwelcome conduct that is either severe or pervasive. …

An alternative workweek schedule (AWS) is a set workweek in California that requires you to work more than 8 hours in a 24-hour period but has fewer days in the workweek. You and fellow employees (a “work unit”) can decide to use an AWS by voting. If an AWS is adopted, it can impact your …

Ten of the most important rights that you have under California employment law include: Overtime pay, Meal and rest breaks, Anti-discrimination rights, Protection from sexual harassment, Family and medical leave, Minimum wages and expense reimbursements, Protection from workplace retaliation, Workplace safety and privacy, Sick leave, and Protection from wrongful termination. All of these California employee …

In California, a constructive dismissal happens when you voluntarily quit because your employer created intolerable working conditions. Those conditions have to be bad enough that you have no reasonable alternative but to resign. Even though you quit, the discharge is treated as a termination. If your employer had no right to fire you, it can lead …

Bonus pay can impact overtime calculations for non-exempt employees if it is a nondiscretionary bonus. These bonuses can change the worker’s regular rate of pay, which is used to calculate overtime pay. Discretionary bonuses, on the other hand, generally do not alter the regular rate of pay and do not impact overtime. How does overtime …

In California, employers are legally required to include certain information on the pay stubs they issue to workers. This is to ensure that wages, deductions, and payee information are correct and comply with state law. If any information is missing or incorrect, it can lead to a wage-and-hour lawsuit. Workers also have a right to inspect their payroll records. What has …

In California, you can be disciplined for submitting a timesheet late or with errors. However, employers are not allowed to delay or dock your pay for a timesheet mishap. Instead, the discipline is limited to warnings, suspensions, or terminations but cannot be done in a discriminatory fashion. In this article, I discuss what you need …

The state of California has numerous laws and regulations that govern how and when paychecks are to be issued. You should be aware of five key rights: what your pay stub has to include, when you are entitled to your wages, your rights to examine your payroll records, what has to be included in your …

In California, the statute of limitations to sue for wrongful termination is either: two years for breach of an implied employment contract or for public policy violations; or three years for FEHA violations, WARN Act violations, or whistleblower retaliation (including Sarbanes-Oxley Act); or four years for breach of a written employment contract. Note that in …

California Labor Code section 2802 requires employers to reimburse their workers for business expenses. Those business expenses include anything you spend in the discharge of your job duties or to follow your employer’s instructions. If you are not reimbursed for these expenses, then you can recover them, as well as attorneys’ fees, in a wage …

In California, a split shift is a work day that is interrupted by unpaid time off work that is not a meal break. You have a split shift if you work in the morning, are given several hours off, and then work again in the evening. You may be entitled to a shift split premium …

Tip pooling is lawful in California so long as the pool does not include managers who have the authority to hire or fire you. Managers can only join the tip pool if they do the same work as you. Employers can have mandatory tip pooling arrangements and must distribute funds in the tip pool fairly and …

In California, you are considered a full-time employee if you work 40 or more hours in a week.1 This entitles you to certain workplace benefits. However, some federal laws define “full-time work” in a way that requires fewer hours on the job. Under these laws, you could be entitled to healthcare or retirement benefits without …

In most states, employers can never withhold tips or deduct wages based on the amount of tips earned, unless it is for a credit card fee or a tip pool. This is regardless of whether the employer takes a tip credit. Managers and supervisors can only keep tips that they directly and solely earned, and …

California’s salary transparency law requires many employers with 15 or more employees to include a pay range in their job postings. It also allows you to request a pay range for your own position. Employers have to provide state regulators with data about the pay they offer. If the law is violated, you can file …

Most nurses do get paid overtime. As a nurse, you are entitled to 1.5 times your regular rate of pay for every hour you work past 40 hours in a 7-day period. However, some nurses – especially registered nurses – may be considered exempt employees. As an exempt employee, you are generally not entitled to overtime …

You can request your personnel file from a former employer by contacting them, often in writing, and demanding access to the file. Employers are legally required to maintain records about your time at work. You generally have a right to review these records. Your personnel files can be valuable evidence if you have suffered a …

In California, the minimum wage for servers in 2025 is $16.90 per hour. In some cities and counties, the minimum wage is higher. Unlike in some other states, servers and other workers in California are entitled to the minimum wage in addition to the tips they earn. Do California’s minimum wage laws apply to servers? …

As of January 1, 2026, to be considered an exempt employee in the U.S., a worker must be paid a minimum salary of $684 per week, or $35,568 per year. Exempt workers in California, meanwhile, must be paid a salary that is at least twice the state’s minimum wage. The 2026 California minimum wage is $16.90 …

Commission-based pay is workplace compensation based on an employee’s sales productivity. It can be tied to the overall quantity of sales or the value of the things sold. The commission agreement sets out how your particular commission pay is generally calculated. State and federal laws regulate commission-based pay. Four key things to know are: you can …

In California, employers are required to fully reimburse you when you use your personal vehicles for business purposes. In total, there are 4 ways to calculate your reimbursement: Lump-sum payments, Actual mileage, Actual expenses, or A mixture of fixed and variable rates. Many employers adopt the IRS’s reimbursement rates, which go by actual mileage, as …