Defend Trade Secrets Act Becomes Law -
Why it matters -
Passed by an overwhelming majority of the federal legislature, the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) became law with President Barack Obama's signature on May...more
5/19/2016
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employee Restrooms ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Misappropriation ,
NLRB ,
Posting Requirements ,
Private Right of Action ,
Rounding ,
Section 7 ,
T-Mobile ,
Trade Secrets ,
Transgender ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies
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
Regulatory Whack-a-Mole: A Renewed Focus on Non-Hazardous Waste Recycling -
Why it matters -
In part due to a string of high-profile enforcements in multiple states, retailers by and large have evaluated the need to...more
3/18/2016
/ COLA ,
Comparative Advertising ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Independent Contractors ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Kohls ,
Lyft ,
Made in the USA ,
Misclassification ,
NLRB ,
Opt-Outs ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Recycling ,
Retailers ,
Settlement ,
TCPA ,
Text Messages ,
TTB ,
Waste Disposal
California Appellate Panel Sets Standard for Disability Discrimination Jury Instructions -
Why it matters -
How should a California trial court properly instruct a jury regarding an employer's intent to discriminate...more
Be Still, My Heart: New Suit Says Fitbits Fail to Track Heartbeats as Promised -
Why it matters -
Fitbit has been hit with another consumer class action asserting false advertising claims, this time alleging that...more
2/12/2016
/ Bad Faith ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Denial of Insurance Coverage ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
False Advertising ,
Fitbit ,
Food Labeling ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
Misrepresentation ,
NAD ,
National Origin Discrimination ,
Organic ,
Paid Leave ,
Preemption ,
Putative Class Actions ,
TCPA ,
Termination ,
Third-Party ,
Uber
In Equal Pay Push, EEOC to Collect Pay Data From Employers -
Why it matters -
On the anniversary of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, President Barack Obama announced that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission...more
2/10/2016
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
EEO-1 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equal Pay ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
FEHA ,
Joint Employers ,
Lyft ,
Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA) ,
Misclassification ,
New Guidance ,
Pay Discrimination ,
Piece-Rate Pay ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Retaliation ,
Settlement ,
Sick Leave
EU Permits Employers to Monitor Private Employee Communications -
Why it matters -
In a favorable ruling for employers, the European Union's (EU) highest court concluded that an employee's right to privacy was not...more
1/28/2016
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Employee Privacy Rights ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
EU ,
National Origin Discrimination ,
Paid Leave ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Surveillance ,
Termination ,
Third-Party ,
Wellness Programs ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
Does The ADEA Permit Disparate Impact Suits by Applicants? Eleventh Circuit Says Yes -
Why it matters -
The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals created a circuit split with a decision that the Age Discrimination in...more
1/18/2016
/ Actual Injuries ,
ADEA ,
Age Discrimination ,
Caregivers ,
Disparate Impact ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hostile Environment ,
Human Rights ,
Independent Contractors ,
Job Applicants ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Misclassification ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Race Discrimination ,
Successor Liability ,
Title VII ,
Transgender ,
Uber ,
Wage and Hour
NLRB Goes One Step Further, Holds Optional Waiver of Class Action Arbitrations Illegal -
Why it matters -
Reiterating its stance against arbitration agreements that prohibit class or collective actions, a panel of...more
12/14/2015
/ Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
IBM ,
NLRB ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblowers
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
We are pleased to share with you the first issue of Manatt's Retail and Consumer Products Law Roundup. The newsletter will be published on a monthly basis and will survey topics of critical importance to the retail,...more
11/5/2015
/ Advertising ,
Anti-Pay Secrecy ,
Barnes and Noble ,
Celebrity Endorsements ,
Certifications ,
Child Pornography ,
Chilling Effect ,
Class Action ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Country of Origin ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disclosure ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equal Pay ,
Fair Pay Act ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Governor Brown ,
Governor Vetoes ,
Green Guides ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Individual Accountability ,
Internal Reporting ,
Investigations ,
Jared Fogle ,
Job Promotions ,
Judicial Review ,
Mach Mining v EEOC ,
Made in the USA ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Michael Jordan ,
NAD ,
Name and Likeness ,
New Legislation ,
On-Duty Meal Period Waivers ,
Pre-Suit Investigation ,
Preemption ,
Product Labels ,
Professional Misconduct ,
Puffery ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Right of Publicity ,
Seal ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Substantially Similar ,
Subway ,
Superiority Claims ,
Title VII ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Wage and Hour ,
Warning Letters ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Yates Memorandum
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
From the California Legislature: New Employment Laws, Bills Set for Signature:
Why it matters -
The California Legislature has been busy with employment-related bills, passing measures to provide additional...more
9/16/2015
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Amended Legislation ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Class Certification ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Discrimination ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Employee Releases ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equal Pay ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
FEHA ,
FRCP 23 ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Governor Brown ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Code ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Misclassification ,
New Legislation ,
Pay Secrecy ,
Pending Legislation ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Retaliation ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Title VII ,
Uber ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers ,
Work Suspensions
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
DOL Proposes Major Overhaul of Overtime Rules:
Why it matters -
Expanding the scope of employees eligible for overtime, the Department of Labor (DOL) released its long-awaited new rules revising the white collar...more
7/23/2015
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Class Certification ,
Classification ,
Comment Period ,
Conciliation ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Fox Searchlight Pictures ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Internships ,
IRS ,
Mach Mining v EEOC ,
Misclassification ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
NPRM ,
Over-Time ,
Primary Beneficiary Test ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Section 6722 ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Tax Penalties ,
Trade Preferences Extension Act (TPEA) ,
Unpaid Interns ,
W-2 ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
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
Coming Soon to an In-Box Near You: An EEOC Charge -
Why it matters:
Employers, take note: the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has initiated the rollout of its electronic complaint program, the first...more
5/28/2015
/ ACT Digital ,
Employee Tracking ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fast-Food Industry ,
FEHA ,
Minimum Wage ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
OSHA ,
Smartphones ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Safety
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
LinkedIn Search Doesn’t Implicate FCRA, California Court Rules -
Why it matters:
Granting LinkedIn’s motion to dismiss, a federal court judge in California held that LinkedIn users could not sue the site for...more
4/30/2015
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Discrimination ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Gender Discrimination ,
H-1B ,
Hiring & Firing ,
LinkedIn ,
Social Media ,
Telecommuting ,
Transgender ,
USCIS ,
Visas
California Legislation to Consider: Protections for Unpaid Interns and Volunteers -
Why it matters:
In this issue of the newsletter, the focus of our review of new California laws shifts from leaves of absence...more
EEOC’s Wellness Challenge Feeling Under the Weather -
Why it matters: The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) efforts to challenge employer wellness programs hit a snag when a federal court judge in...more
12/1/2014
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Arbitration ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Conde Nast ,
D.R. Horton v NLRB ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
GINA ,
Honeywell International ,
Iskanian ,
Murphy Oil USA ,
Ralphs ,
Unpaid Interns ,
Wellness Programs
State Voters Pass Paid Sick Leave, Wage Increases -
Why it matters: The polls have closed and the votes are in: The midterm elections will have a significant impact on employers across the country as voters in multiple...more
11/21/2014
/ Arbitration ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Facebook ,
Halliburton ,
Independent Contractors ,
Iskanian ,
Minimum Wage ,
NLRB ,
Paid Leave ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Sick Leave ,
Social Media ,
Trucking Industry ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wellness Programs
DOL Grants Could Signal More Misclassification Actions -
Why it matters: Employers have faced a tidal wave of litigation over the alleged misclassification of employees as independent contractors, with workers ranging...more
10/30/2014
/ ADEA ,
Adverse Employment Action ,
Age Discrimination ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
FedEx ,
FEHA ,
Medical Examinations ,
Misclassification ,
NFL ,
Strategic Enforcement Plan
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