California Legal Blog – A Deep Dive Into Issues That Affect Your Life - Page 3

Reporting Time Pay — "Should I get paid just for showing up to work?"Watch this video on YouTube In California, you may be entitled to reporting time pay if you show up to work but get sent home before working half of your shift, or if you work a second shift of under 2 hours. …

California Employee Rights — Rules Every Employee NEEDS to knowWatch this video on YouTube 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, Protection from workplace retaliation, Workplace safety and privacy, Sick …

Can My Boss Force Me to Work 7 Days a Week?Watch this video on YouTube Generally, it is not illegal for your employer to require you to work 7 days in a week. However, some states forbid this practice. Where it is allowed, you may be entitled to overtime pay. In some cases, you may …

In California, an employee misclassification lawsuit is a civil case where you argue your employer misclassified you to avoid paying overtime or other payroll benefits. If your lawsuit is successful, you can recover your unpaid wages as well as the benefits that you did not receive. In this article I discuss what you need to …

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says that a normal work shift is no more than 8 consecutive hours in a day, with each shift split by at least 8 hours of rest. A normal workweek is 5 such US Labor Department’s OSHA cites 50 safety violations, proposes $917,000in fines against Bostik Inc. following …

Forced Overtime — Is it Legal in California?Watch this video on YouTube If you are a non-exempt employee in California, you must receive overtime pay for exceeding certain thresholds of “hours worked.” Specifically, your employer owes you overtime in the following three circumstances: Time-and-a-half pay when you work more than 8 hours in a workday …

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 …

If you have been wrongfully terminated, you may be able to get your job back by way of legal action. If you can prove that the discharge was illegal, the court may order the employer to reinstate you, in addition to compensating you for lost wages. In this article I discuss how you can …

A right to sue letter by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) gives you permission to file your employment discrimination lawsuit in federal court. Receiving a right to sue letter means that you have exhausted your administrative remedies, which is often necessary for bringing a private lawsuit. It is as if the EEOC says to …

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 …

Child Labor Laws in California – 5 Key Facts Every Parent & Employer Should KnowWatch this video on YouTube California’s child labor laws regulate the circumstances under which minors (persons under the age of 18) can work in the state. The state laws are supplemented by federal laws that restrict what occupations can employ minors in …

You generally only have First Amendment rights at work if your employer is the government. The First Amendment does not apply to private actors, such as private businesses. However, some state and federal employment laws protect some of your speech in the workplace. If you are a public employee, your speech can still be limited so …

Commission-Based Pay Laws in California – Know Your RightsWatch this video on YouTube 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 …

Employers who offer a severance agreement to induce you to waive your rights must follow special rules if you at least 40. Federal law requires these severance agreements to be clearly written and explicit. You must be given adequate time to review the agreement and cannot be pressured into signing it. Violations can amount to …

For non-exempt employees in California, make-up time is additional time spent on the job to make up for a brief absence from work earlier in the workweek. A request for make-up time must be made in writing. Make-up time does not count toward your overtime hours in most circumstances. Your employer cannot encourage you to …

In California employment law, a separation agreement is a written contract between an employer and a worker who is about to be terminated. The agreement generally requires the worker to waive all legal claims that they may have against the company. In exchange, the worker receives severance pay. Many separation agreements in California also restrict …

Wrongful Termination Lawsuits — "What is the statute of limitations?"Watch this video on YouTube The California statute of limitations for wrongful termination is two years for implied breach of contract- or public policy violations and three years for FEHA violations, WARN Act violations, or whistleblower retaliation. Certain federal wrongful termination laws use a lengthier statute …

What is a "diminished value claim" after a car accident in California?Watch this video on YouTube A diminished value claim, if successful, allows you to get compensation for the difference in the value of your vehicle before versus after an auto accident. Five key things to know about diminished value claims in California are: what …

Holiday Pay in California – Do Employers Have to Pay for Holidays?Watch this video on YouTube Like most U.S. states, California companies are not required to pay overtime/premium pay (“holiday pay“) to employees who work on holidays. Instead, employees earn their regular rate of pay (“straight-time pay”) as they do on any other day. There …

Do car salespeople get paid hourly?Watch this video on YouTube California car salesmen classified as non-exempt employees are not entitled to an hourly wage. Most are paid on a commission basis or at a “piece rate,” though some also make an hourly wage in addition to commissioned earnings. Whether you get paid through commissions or …

The general rule is that California employers cannot take away wage payments.1 This includes sales commissions that have been earned.2 However, employers can carve out exceptions to this rule in the commission agreement, which is an employment contract. These exceptions in the employment agreement have to be tied to the employee’s sales, rather than general …

While federal law does not require a meal or rest break in a 5-hour shift, some state laws do. Many states, however, only guarantee a meal break for shifts longer than 5 hours. While rest break are paid, meal breaks are usually unpaid. If your employer does not provide a mandated break, you can file …