There are two main hiring and recruiting practices that companies and their HR professional and recruiters should avoid, because they are prohibited by law and lead to severe penalties, including fines and even criminal prosecution, enforced by Department of Justice: 1. Agreements Not To Recruit Certain Employees An HR professional…
On October 24, 2017, an Orange County jury returned a verdict in the amount of $176 for a mechanic who sued his employer for racial harassment, racial discrimination, and disability discrimination. The defendant in that case was a heavy equipment rental company. They hired a plaintiff to perform maintenance on…
Many employers, especially in the tech / start-up world often fire an employee right before his bonus or commissions in order to avoid paying that bonus. Of course this is more likely to happen if the bonus due is significant. If there is sufficient evidence that avoiding to pay bonus…
The ADA and FEHA (Fair Employment and Housing Act) prohibit discrimination on the basis of an employee’s disability in all phases of employment process – from application, medical exams, hiring decisions, promotions, and of course terminations. Under ADA, disability is defined as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits…
An interesting case on the vacation policy issue has been ruled earlier this year by the court of appeal. Employees brought a class action suit against their employer claiming that the vacation policy that required them to work for at least one year before their right to vacation vested was…
California nurses will get roughly $6 million from health care giant Kaiser Permanente for time spent doing unpaid work.The payout settles a class action filed last year on behalf of 1,397 advice nurses who take calls from patients at three of the Permanente Medical Group’s call centers in Sacramento, Vallejo…
Misclassifying an employee as an independent contractor is an easier mistake to make than many employers believe. The recent case Linton v DeSoto Cab Company, Inc., illustrates this very well. In that case, the first appellate district found that the plaintiff cab-driver was an employee despite having lots of control…
On August 8, 2017, EEOC announced filing a lawsuit against UPS Freight, alleging violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). “Employers must treat employees with disabilities the same as those without disabilities when issuing workplace benefits,” said EEOC St. Louis District director James R. Neely Jr. According to EEOC,…
The following are the key points of California law regarding entitlement to a day’s rest after working more than six consecutive days that both employees and employers should know: California Labor Code sections 551 and 552 generally guarantee workers a day of rest after six days of work. A day…
The importance of witnesses and witness statements in an employment or a wrongful termination case cannot be overstated. Even one witness can make a difference between having a no case and having a case, and between having a weaker case and having a very strong case. This is especially true…