labor lawAdivision of labor law center

With the current economic crisis, many employers are considering giving workers additional unpaid time off during the holidays. This includes giving workers Friday, November 28 (the day after Thanksgiving) and/or Friday, December 26 (the day after Christmas) off without pay.

Other employers are considering closing for an entire week between Christmas and New Years.

However, these tactics raise issues around the payment of exempt salaried employees that every employer needs to be aware of. (more…)

Parents in California are furious at the local school district – but school board officials insist they were merely following federal HIPAA regulations.

Surprised parents in Vacaville were caught off guard when their youngsters reported that last year’s female music teacher was now a “mister.” The teacher is undergoing transgender surgery, and reported to Foxboro Elementary school as a man at the beginning of the school year.

Angry taxpayers lodged complaints (more…)

 A tragic case in California illustrates exactly why federal legislators recently passed stiffer penalties for employers who fail to provide safe working conditions for workers under the age of 18.

GINA, the recently passed Genetic Information Non-disclosure Act, provides for a $50,000 fine for any employer who is found in violation of a safety regulation, resulting in the death of a worker who is a minor.

Recently, the California Department of Industrial Relations’ Division of Occupational Safety & Health (DIR/Cal/OSHA) issued six citations in the sad death of a 17-year-old female Hispanic farm worker. Even more tragically, this death could easily have been prevented if the employer had taken a few minutes to comply with a few simple safety rules.

Maria Vasquez Jimenez died of (more…)

The federal government recently announced grants totaling $10 million to train workers for the growing energy industry.

High gas prices have prompted an even greater interest in alternative sources of energy, including nuclear energy, wind power, solar energy and ethanol. There has also been renewed interest in offshore oil drilling. This has fueled demand for workers in the field, nationwide.

The Community Action Partnership of Sonoma County in Santa Rose, California (more…)

A recent California Supreme Court ruling held that an employer can legally terminate an employee who tests positive for marijuana – even when the employee has a prescription for medical marijuana use.

The ruling also affirmed the right of California employers to terminate employees, or refuse to hire applicants, who consume alcohol to excess.

Under the California Compassionate Use Act of 1996, residents in the state can legally use marijuana if it is prescribed by their doctor. Medical marijuana use is controversial, but proponents say it is highly effective in treating the nausea of chemotherapy, among other conditions.

The major conflict in Ross vs. Ragingwire Telecommunications, Inc. is that federal law prohibits possession of marijuana – even by medical users. So while possession of small amounts of “weed” for personal use is legal under a physician’s direction in California, it is not legal under federal law.

Essentially, the California Supreme Court ruled that a worker can be fired for violating federal law, even if what they are doing is legal under state law.

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