The rules governing the employment relationship are always changing. Laws creating new employer obligations, technology solutions making work more efficient and more complicated, and rules governing the resolution of disputes...more
4/11/2025
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Rights ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Policies ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Flexible Work Arrangements ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Payroll Records ,
Remote Working ,
State Labor Laws ,
Telecommuting ,
Wage and Hour
In 2023, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (“FMCSA”) under the Biden administration started accepting public comments about the many petitions for waiver that key stakeholders, including the California Attorney...more
4/4/2025
/ Biden Administration ,
California ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
FMCSA ,
Preemption ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trucking Industry ,
Trump Administration ,
Wage and Hour ,
Waivers ,
Washington
Seyfarth Synopsis: On December 26, 2023, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (“FMCSA”) announced they would be accepting comments from the public in response to multiple petitions requesting waivers from the...more
1/12/2024
/ Comment Period ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Drivers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
FMCSA ,
Preemption ,
Public Comment ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Shipping ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Waivers
Seyfarth Synopsis: In August, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (“FMCSA”) announced that it would start accepting petitions for waivers from the recent decisions preempting California and Washington’s meal and...more
11/17/2023
/ California ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Employees ,
FMSCA ,
Labor Commissioners ,
Preemption ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
State and Local Government ,
State Attorneys General ,
Wage and Hour ,
Waivers
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration determined only a few years ago that federal law preempts California’s and Washington’s meal and rest period rules. Regardless of what would happen in the...more
8/22/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
California ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
FMCSA ,
Interstate Commerce ,
Labor Reform ,
Preemption ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Waivers ,
Washington
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Northern District of California recently issued two rulings with noteworthy employment implications for commercial air carriers. The first ruling represents the first time a court has found that federal...more
7/27/2023
/ Air Carriers ,
Airlines ,
Airports ,
California ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Aviation Act ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Labor Code ,
Pilots ,
Preemption ,
Wage and Hour
Seyfarth Synopsis: Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that a crane mechanic who performed some work on a truck chassis came within the purview of the Motor Carrier Act exemption to the Fair Labor...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) exempts workers engaged in interstate commerce from enforcement of mandatory arbitration agreements. Uber drivers (and other drivers working in the gig economy) have...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Recent decisions from the California Supreme Court and Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found that at least some of California’s wage and hour laws can apply to flight crew domiciled in the Golden State if...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Back in January 2020, a federal district court enjoined the State of California from enforcing AB 5 against interstate motor carriers. Now, in a split 2-1 decision, a Ninth Circuit panel has reversed the...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Businesses at the San Francisco International Airport (SFO) may need to make significant changes to employee health benefits under San Francisco’s Healthy Airport Ordinance by April 1, 2021. These FAQs...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Following the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s determination in December 2018 that federal law preempts California’s meal and rest break rules, observers questioned whether California courts...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The emergency leave provided by Congress in March 2020 at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic is starting to run out for many employees whose children’s schools are still closed. Employers and employees...more
10/23/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
EPSLA ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Flexible Work Arrangements ,
Local Ordinance ,
Relief Measures ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trump Administration
Seyfarth Synopsis: On September 1, 2020, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved another temporary emergency ordinance, this time protecting employees, contractors, and job applicants from adverse employment action if...more
9/23/2020
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employees ,
Crisis Management ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Local Ordinance ,
Low-Wage Workers ,
Quarantine ,
San Francisco ,
Sick Employees ,
State and Local Government ,
Workplace Safety
Seyfarth Synopsis: On July 7, 2020, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed additional emergency measures to establish cleaning and disease prevention standards at tourist hotels and large commercial office buildings. ...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On June 23, 2020, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed an emergency “Right to Reemployment” Ordinance in response to layoffs due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Mayor had ten days to take action on...more
7/9/2020
/ City Councils ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Business ,
Emergency Rule ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Layoffs ,
Local Ordinance ,
Notice Requirements ,
Record Retention ,
Rehiring Issues ,
Right to Reemployment ,
San Francisco
Seyfarth Synopsis: On June 23, 2020 the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed an emergency “reemployment” ordinance in response to layoffs due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Ordinance still requires the Mayor’s assent,...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On April 28, 2020, Mayor London Breed announced a plan to allow employees working in San Francisco to use funds from the Healthcare Security Ordinance (“HCSO”) contributions to buy “necessary expenditures,”...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Effective April 8, 2020, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (“FMCSA”) extended an emergency rule suspending “Hours of Service” rules that generally limit the number of hours certain truck...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The California Supreme Court has held that, under the Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”), an employee does not lose the ability to pursue representative claims as an “aggrieved employee” by virtue of...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: A federal court has granted a preliminary injunction blocking the State of California from enforcing AB 5 against motor carriers. The court provided a fulsome analysis demonstrating that the Federal...more
1/20/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Dynamex ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (FAAAA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Motion To Enjoin ,
Motor Carriers ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Retroactive Application ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Teamsters ,
TRO ,
Trucking Industry ,
Trucking Regulations ,
Wage and Hour
Seyfarth Synopsis: On the heels of last week’s federal court order temporarily blocking enforcement of AB 5 by the State of California, a California state court in Los Angeles reached the same conclusion, finding the Federal...more
1/13/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Dynamex ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (FAAAA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Motor Carriers ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
Retroactive Application ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
TRO ,
Trucking Industry ,
Trucking Regulations ,
Wage and Hour
Seyfarth Synopsis: Effective January 1, 2020, AB 5 implements the mandatory “ABC” test for determining whether a person is an independent contractor or employee under California law. Specific to motor carriers, AB 5 presumes...more
1/6/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (FAAAA) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Motor Carriers ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trucking Industry ,
Trucking Regulations ,
Wage and Hour
Seyfarth Synopsis: On Tuesday, the Third Circuit issued a decision rejecting the U.S. DOL’s general position that incentive bonuses paid to employees by a third-party must be factored into overtime pay. While the decision...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Following the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s determination in December 2018 that federal law preempts California’s meal and rest break rules, observers questioned what deference courts would...more