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News Notes: NLRB Removes Union Protection In Company Takeovers

The National Labor Relations Board has overturned one of its prior rulings that gave unions some protection from challenge when a nonunionized employer acquires a unionized company. Under the previous rule, unions could bargain with the new, nonunion employer free from challenge for a reasonable length of time after the takeover. Now, the NLRB has […]

News Notes: Court Changes Its Mind On Retaliation And Religious Accommodation Cases

The federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal has reconsidered two opinions it issued last year. In one case, the court had ruled that the anti-retaliation provisions of the federal wage and hour laws don’t protect workers who are fired for griping about overtime violations directly to their employers rather than to the government. The court […]

News Flash: Court Upholds Municipality’s Limitations On Disability Retirement Benefits

A California Court of Appeal has upheld a decision to deny disability retirement benefits to a San Diego city utility worker. Before he started working for the city, Charles Alesi injured his knee several times while jet-skiing and in a beach football game. He then reinjured the knee twice at work and once more while […]

News Notes: Gay-friendly Policies Becoming More Prevalent

More large companies are implementing gay- and lesbian-friendly policies in the workplace, according to a report just released by the Human Rights Campaign. This year, 21 companies, in contrast to 11 last year, received a perfect score on the campaign’s “Corporate Equity Index,” which measures how certain Fortune 500 or Forbes 200 companies treat employees […]

Immigration News Update: No-Match & I-9s

A federal judge has rejected a request by the federal government to push up the timeline for deciding a case involving a controversial rule on the steps employers should take when they receive a No-Match letter—indicating that the information submitted for an employee fails to match government records. Now, the decision won’t be handed down […]

News Notes: Employer Settles DOL Charges Over Using Youth Drivers

Restaurant Runners Inc., which contracts with restaurants to deliver prepared meals to customers’ homes, has shelled out $15,200 in civil penalties to settle Department of Labor (DOL) charges that the company violated child labor laws. The DOL said Restaurant Runner, which has offices in Santa Clarita and Bakersfield, allowed minors to work as delivery drivers, […]

Wage and Hour: Court Weighs in on Employers’ Meal Period Obligations

In California, employers must provide meal periods to employees at certain intervals. But must employers ensure that employees actually take their meal periods, or is it sufficient to offer the meal break time and leave it up to the employee to decide whether to take it? Unfortunately, there hasn’t been much guidance on these questions […]

News Notes: IWC Eliminates Minimum Wage Exemptions, Meal Credits

The Industrial Welfare Commission has eliminated certain exemptions from minimum wage requirements while retaining others. The changes take effect Jan. 1, 2001, as does the new minimum wage of $6.25 per hour. The IWC did away with existing exemptions for state and local government employees, full-time carnival ride operators, actors, personal attendants in private homes, […]