This week, California’s Supreme Court heard oral argument in Adolph v. Uber Technologies Inc., No. S274671, a case in which the Court is poised to decide whether it will, in effect, overrule part of a recent U.S. Supreme...more
Yesterday, the United States Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana, Case No. 20-1573, regarding California’s ban on Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) representative waivers...more
6/16/2022
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
California ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Iskanian v CLS Transportation ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Preemption ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
SCOTUS ,
State Labor Laws ,
Viking River Cruises ,
Viking River Cruises Inc v Moriana
On January 25, 2022, OSHA announced its decision to withdraw the vaccination, testing and face covering emergency temporary standard (ETS) issued on November 5 and effective January 26. As Manatt reported, the ETS required...more
1/27/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Lack of Authority ,
National Federation of Independent Business v Department of Labor and OSHA ,
OSHA ,
SCOTUS ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Yesterday the Supreme Court issued a stay of OSHA’s vaccinate-or-test emergency temporary standard (ETS), blocking the ETS from taking effect. While the Court issued a stay of the ETS, it allowed the vaccine mandate for...more
1/14/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Health and Safety ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
National Federation of Independent Business v Department of Labor and OSHA ,
OSHA ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Late on Friday, December 17, 2021, the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ended the Fifth Circuit’s stay of OSHA’s COVID-19 vaccination and testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), which applies to employers with 100+...more
12/21/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Commerce Clause ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Motion to Dissolve ,
Multidistrict Litigation ,
OSHA ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
In a major turn of events for California employers, on December 15, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in a case that challenges California’s ban on arbitration agreements that limit employees’ right to sue their...more
12/17/2021
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Epic Systems Corp v Lewis ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Iskanian v CLS Transportation ,
Labor Regulations ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Preemption ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
SCOTUS ,
Wage and Hour
In Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, a landmark 6-3 decision, the United States Supreme Court ruled today that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects employees from discrimination on the basis of sexual...more
6/17/2020
/ Altitude Express Inc v Zarda ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Civil Rights Act ,
EEOC v RG & GR Harris Funeral Homes ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gender Identity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
LGBTQ ,
SCOTUS ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
Will Single-Use Products and Packaging Be a Thing of the Past in California? -
Walk down virtually any street, sidewalk, path, beach or trail in California and you will invariably find at least some single-use product or...more
6/13/2019
/ Arbitration ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Class Action ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Made in the USA ,
Opt-Outs ,
Popular ,
Retailers ,
SCOTUS ,
Single-Use/No Resale Restriction
The Supreme Court, in a sharply-divided 5-4 ruling issued on April 24, ruled that nothing in the Federal Arbitration Act allows courts to compel class action arbitration even if the contract is ambiguous in that regard, and...more
On May 21, 2018, in a significant decision for employers nationwide, a divided United States Supreme Court held in a trio of cases that employers may require employees—as a condition of employment—to enter into arbitration...more
Supreme Court Gives Stamp of Approval to Representative Statistical Evidence -
Why it matters -
In a closely watched case, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the use of representative statistical evidence for...more
4/13/2016
/ Discrimination ,
EEO-1 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equal Pay ,
Evidence ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Lilly Ledbetter ,
Minimum Wage ,
National Origin Discrimination ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Personal Liability ,
SCOTUS ,
Statistical Sampling ,
Title VII ,
Tyson Foods v Bouaphakeo ,
Wage and Hour
Following California, New York Toughens Equal Pay Law -
Why it matters:
Following in the recent footsteps of California, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law the Achieve Pay Equality Act, providing greater...more
11/13/2015
/ Age Discrimination ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equal Pay ,
GINA ,
Governor Cuomo ,
Mach Mining v EEOC ,
Motion to Compel ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
SCOTUS ,
Social Media ,
Termination ,
Wellness Programs
FTC Offers Employers Lesson in FCRA Compliance—And Limited Exceptions -
Why it matters:
A California employer recently received a lesson in Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) compliance from the Federal Trade...more
10/5/2015
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Background Checks ,
Ban the Box ,
Barnes and Noble ,
Conditional Job Offers ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Consent ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Chance Act ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Equity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Individual Accountability ,
Internal Reporting ,
Job Applicants ,
Judicial Review ,
Mach Mining v EEOC ,
Notice Requirements ,
Pending Legislation ,
Remand ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Split of Authority ,
Title VII ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Yates Memorandum
California Sick Leave Law Gets Updates -
Why it matters:
California's Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act just took effect on July 1 but Governor Jerry Brown has already signed into law tweaks to the statute....more
8/10/2015
/ Accrued Benefits ,
Administrative Interpretation ,
Amicus Briefs ,
Appearance Policy ,
Back Pay ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Cheerleaders ,
Classification ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
DLSE ,
Economic Realities Test ,
EEOC v Abercrombie ,
Employee Rights ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Governor Brown ,
Healthy Workplaces Healthy Families Act 2014 ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Commissioners ,
Misclassification ,
New Guidance ,
New Legislation ,
NFL ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
Suitable Seats Lawsuits ,
Title VII ,
UPS ,
Wage and Hour
The Impact of National Same-Sex Marriage for Employers -
Why it matters:
How will employers feel the impact of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges? The landmark ruling that the Fourteenth...more
7/13/2015
/ Appeals ,
Class Certification ,
Classification ,
Coerced Patronage ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
DOMA ,
Due Process ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Protection ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure ,
FedEx ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
FRCP 23(b)(3) ,
Indemnification ,
Independent Contractors ,
IRS ,
Misclassification ,
NLRA ,
Obergefell v. Hodges ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Reimbursements ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
SCOTUS ,
Selfies ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Spouses ,
Title VII ,
Uber ,
Unpaid Wages ,
US v Windsor ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wages ,
Wrongful Termination
Joint Employers Can Be Liable for Employee Misclassification in California:
Why it matters -
Liability under the California Labor Code extends to joint employers that are aware of a willful misclassification of an...more
6/29/2015
/ Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Class Action ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Discrimination ,
Earned Sick Time ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Hostile Environment ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint and Several Liability ,
Joint Employers ,
Minimum Wage ,
Misclassification ,
OSHA ,
Paid Leave ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
SCOTUS ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Sick Leave ,
Transgender ,
Tyson Foods ,
Wage and Hour
Actual Knowledge by Employer Not Necessary for Title VII Religious Discrimination Claim, U.S. Supreme Court Rules -
Why it matters:
In a closely watched case, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with a teenage applicant to...more
6/15/2015
/ Abercrombie & Fitch ,
Class Action ,
Disability ,
EEOC v Abercrombie ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
FEHA ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Mootness ,
On-Call Employees ,
On-Duty Meal Period Waivers ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
SCOTUS ,
Security Guards ,
Settlement ,
TCPA ,
Text Messages ,
Texting ,
Title VII ,
Wage and Hour
U.S. Supreme Court Permits Narrow Review of EEOC Conciliation Process -
Why it matters:
The U.S. Supreme Court handed a victory—albeit limited—to employers when it determined that courts may consider the...more
5/14/2015
/ Class Action ,
Conciliation ,
Dress Codes ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Harassment ,
Internal Reporting ,
Mach Mining v EEOC ,
NLRB ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
SCOTUS ,
Security Checks ,
Title VII ,
Wage and Hour
To Accommodate or Not to Accommodate? U.S. Supreme Court Weighs in on Pregnant Employees -
Why it matters:
The U.S. Supreme Court decided the first of two major employment law cases this term when a 6-3 majority of...more
4/21/2015
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Facebook ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Obscenity ,
Pregnancy Discrimination ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Union Related-Speech ,
Whistleblowers ,
Young v United Parcel Service
No Class Action Waivers on PAGA Claims: With Cert Denial, California’s Iskanian Decision Stands -
Why it matters: It’s official: The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to review the California Supreme Court’s decision in...more
2/5/2015
/ ABC Test ,
Arbitration ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Class Certification ,
Employee Definition ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Independent Contractors ,
Iskanian v CLS Transportation ,
Paid Leave ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
SCOTUS ,
Sick Leave
U.S. Supreme Court: Security Screenings Not Compensable -
Why it matters: In a closely watched case, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously reversed the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to rule that the time spent by...more
1/26/2015
/ Amazon ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
FEHA ,
Integrity Staffing v Busk ,
Internet Retailers ,
NLRB ,
On-Call Employees ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Retailers ,
SCOTUS ,
Security Checks ,
Wage and Hour
EEOC Sues Over Transgender Discrimination -
Why it matters: In its first cases alleging bias against transgender employees, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed suit against a Florida eye clinic and a...more
10/20/2014
/ Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
IRS ,
NLRB ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Social Media Policy ,
Title VII ,
Transgender ,
Unpaid Interns ,
Wage and Hour
Recess Is Over: Supreme Court Strikes NLRB Appointments -
Why it matters: Striking a blow to the President and the National Labor Relations Board, the U.S. Supreme Court held that three recess appointments made by...more
7/10/2014
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Canning v NLRB ,
Disability ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Facebook ,
LGBTQ ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Recess Appointments ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
SCOTUS
The More Things Change: U.S. Supreme Court Rules on “Changing Clothes” -
Why it matters: In a unanimous decision – save for a single footnote – the U.S. Supreme Court held that the time spent donning and doffing...more