Useful information

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 …

Warehouse workers often face significant wage and hour issues in the workplace. 5 of the most common are: minimum wage protections, overtime pay, payments for rest and meal breaks, being required to work off the clock, and receiving unpaid wages after termination. These concerns are growing more and more important as large companies, like Amazon …

California does not have a state employment law that defines part-time work as being less than a certain number of hours. Instead, it is generally up to the employer to define what “part-time” means. The Labor Market Information Division of the California Employment Development Department has a non-legally binding definition of part-time work as fewer than …

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 must be tied to the employee’s sales rather than general business …

In California, marital status is a protected class under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). This means that employers cannot discriminate against you based on your marital status. If you are fired, demoted, passed over, harassed, or otherwise retaliated against based on whether you are married, you have legal recourse under anti-discrimination laws in the …

In California, the Order, Decision or Award (ODA) of the Labor Commissioner is the ruling of the hearing officer in a wage claim, often for wage theft. ODAs are issued after the wage claim hearing. The decision indicates who won the hearing and how much the employer must pay to the worker. The ODA can …

TL;DR In most cases, your car insurance covers someone else driving your car if you gave them permission. If another driver caused the crash, that driver is generally liable, though your rates may still increase. If your friend caused the accident with your permission, your insurance usually pays first under permissive use. Your coverage typically …

California is not a “right-to-work” state. Right-to-work states make it unlawful to require employees to join a union or pay union dues. Attempts to implement such legislation in California have failed. Therefore, private California employers may require you to join a union in order to get hired or keep your job. What is a right-to-work …

In California, if you report your income on a Form 1099, you are an independent contractor, while if you report it on a W-2 form, you are an employee. Payroll taxes are automatically withheld if you are a W-2 employee; meanwhile, if you are an independent contractor, you are responsible for paying them. If you …

As a hospital worker in California, you may be subject to special overtime rules. If you are classified as an exempt worker, you are not entitled to overtime (time-and-a-half) pay unless your employer chooses to provide it. If you are non-exempt, you are entitled to overtime pay for working more than: 8 hours in a …

TL;DR If a leased car is totaled, you must notify your insurer and leasing company and still owe the remaining lease balance. Insurance only pays the car’s fair market value, which may be less than what you owe. Gap insurance can cover the difference between the insurance payout and the remaining lease amount. The insurance …

Employers who offer a severance agreement to induce you to waive your rights must follow special rules if you are 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 …

In California, “use it or lose it” vacation policies are prohibited. However, employers are only prohibited from taking back vacation time that has already accrued. They can take other measures to limit how much vacation time you can accumulate, such as capping the number of vacation days you can build up. California prohibits “use it …

TL;DR The average dog bite lawsuit payout in the U.S. was about $58,500 in 2023, but results vary widely. Compensation depends on injury severity, partial fault, state dog bite laws, and available insurance. More serious injuries and higher medical, wage, and pain and suffering damages usually mean higher payouts. Payouts may be reduced if the …

Colorado courts charge no fee to seal a criminal record for a case that results in a dismissal or acquittal. The fee to seal convictions is $65. In addition, you will end up spending up to $20 on retrieving your criminal record (the first step of getting a seal) and about $5 on postage when …