The last couple years have been very busy for The EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission). With new and expanding issues such as social media passwords issues, domestic violence reports, and new rights and discussions for the LGBT community. The strides taken for equality of same-sex partners and the effect of ObamaCare mean changes in the employment world. The laws surrounding employee rights is ever changing, but we strive to have the most comprehensive knowledge of California employment laws.

The EEOC now has a new Strategic Enforcement Plan (SEP), this plan gives directive for the top six issues which will take priority for the foreseeable future. These are the most common areas of issues in the work place and are sited in hundreds of thousands of employee complaints every year.

The new plan calls for strong focus on the following:

• Improved hiring and promotion avenues for minorities
• Improved protection for vulnerable employees including immigrant and migrant workers
• Transparency of new and emerging discrimination problems in the workplace
• Improved enforcement of equal pay laws
• Preserving and improving access legal help for all
• Targeting outreach programs to preventing harassment and educate would be victims

As the EEOC works to improve things system wide, United Employees Law Group works with individuals to protect employees’ rights. If you are having issues at work or have had with a previous employer we are here to help.

Call TODAY for your free and private consultation.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock/ ESB Professional

The post The EEOC has Been Busy! appeared first on UELG.

[headline]Who owes me money if my company goes Bankrupt?[/headline]

The battle lines have been drawn over the question of how the term “EMPLOYER” should be defined. Should the term “EMPLOYER” simply mean only the company that hired the employee which is the old common law definition or should the term “EMPLOYER” take into account broader principles of California Labor Law.

A major case was just decided by the California Supreme Court that established who can be held liable for failure to pay wages. A number of cases were previously heard in which only the company who was the direct employer could be held responsible for any unpaid wages.

There are New Laws that state the real property can be seized to pay employees as well.

There were a number of cases including Reynolds v. Bement (2005) 36 Cal.4th 1075, in which the Court “looked to the common law rather than the applicable wage order to define employment in an action under section 1194 seeking to hold a corporation’s directors and officers personally liable for its employees’ unpaid overtime compensation.” Labor Code section 1194 gives employees the right to recover “the legal minimum wage or the legal overtime compensation.”

The California Supreme Court has ruled on one of the most important wage and hour cases and that is Martinez v. Combs 49 Cal.4th 35 (2010). This case explains who is and who is not an “EMPLOYER” under California wage law and it includes a number of important rulings that will shape California wage and hour practice for years to come as well as California Labor Law in general.
By way of background, the question of who must pay minimum wage or overtime under section 1194 has been addressed only once since 1913, when California passed its minimum wage law. That one decision was Reynolds v. Bement (2005) 36 Cal.4th 1075, in which the Court “looked to the common law rather than the applicable wage order to define employment in an action under section 1194 seeking to hold a corporation’s directors and officers personally liable for its employees’ unpaid overtime compensation.”
The main argument that was put forth in Martinez v. Combs was that the history of section 1194 showed that the legislature intended to give the Industrial Welfare Commission (IWC) the power to define various terms used in the regulations that the IWC had the power promulgate. Within the definition of employer the regulation under Wage Order No. 14, Cal. Code Regs., tit. 8, § 11140, subd. 2(C) use the term defining employer as one who “suffered or permitted an individual to work”. Wage Order No. 14, Cal. Code Regs., tit. 8, § 11140, subd. 2(F) describes employer as one who “exercises control over wages, hours, or working conditions”.
The power of the Industrial Welfare Commission (IWC) to define employment is not expressly granted in the act creating the IWC but merely implied, and thus extends only so far as necessary to permit the IWC effectively to exercise its expressly granted powers to regulate wages, hours, and working conditions. West’s Ann.Cal.Labor Code § 1173 et seq. Therefore regulations issued by an administrative agency such as the Industrial Welfare Commission (IWC) under a delegation of legislative power must be reasonably necessary to effectuate the purposes of the statute. West’s Ann.Cal.Labor Code § 1173 et seq. and therefore has the force and effect of law.
The California Supreme Court stated that in actions under section 1194 to recover unpaid minimum wages, the IWC’s wage orders do generally define the employment relationship, and thus who may be liable. An examination of the wage orders’ language, history and place in the context of California wage law, moreover, makes clear that those orders do not incorporate the federal definition of employment. Applying these conclusions to the facts of the case, the Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeal’s judgment.
As set forth in the Supreme Court’s ruling it stated that the Wage Orders set forth a multi-pronged, disjunctive definition of employment: an employer is one who, directly or indirectly, or through an agent or any other person, engages, suffers, or permits any person to work, or exercises control over the wages, hours, or working conditions of any person. The “engage, suffer, or permit” component of the definition does not require a common law “master and servant” relationship, but is broad enough to cover “irregular working arrangements the proprietor of a business might otherwise disavow with impunity.” Phrased as it is in the alternative (i.e., “wages, hours, or working conditions”), the language of the IWC’s ’employer’ definition has the obvious utility of reaching situations in which multiple entities control different aspects of the employment relationship, as when one entity, which hires and pays workers, places them with other entities that supervise the work. Finally, the IWC’s “employer” definition is intended to distinguish state law from the federal FLSA and is therefore controlling.
This case becomes extraordinarily significant in light of the fact that individual company owners cannot hide behind their corporations to shield them from personal liability. The law clearly states that anyone who directly or indirectly permits a person to work or exercises control over that person’s wages, hours or working conditions shall be held personally responsible for the payment of all wages due. This helps to stop those who abuse the labor laws and attempt to deny wages that have been earned. The California Supreme Court has spoken and has upheld the rulings By the California Industrial Welfare Commission which broadly defines who shall be treated as the employer.
If you have any questions with regard to your rights is important that you seek the help of a San Jose Labor Law Attorneys that your rights will be fully protected.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock/Billion Photos

The post Company Belly Up, Who Pays Me? appeared first on UELG.

Your employer failed to pay your wages in full? In case you are entitled to claim wages from United Employee Law Group (UELG). UELG organizes administrative hearing and will decide whether your employer is legally evaded payment.

This article will be useful for those who want to know how to prepare for a hearing.

Gather The Documents

To start, you need to collect all the key documents that can prove your rightness. These include the following documents:

Documents that show your work schedule and work hours.

Payment checks. Any checks or payments that you have received from your employer.

Documents obtained from your employer. All the documents that you received from your employer while working, such as letters, employment contract or other.

Correspondence of you and your employer. All e-mails, messages on social networks, or other written communications that have relation to your payroll.

Request Your Staff Records

You should also request your worker file and pay sheet records from your hirer as soon as possible. Under California law, your hirer is required to let you check your staff file within 30 days of a request. You can also give a written request for your hirer to mail you a copy of your staff file.

Participate in the settlement conference

In the majority of cases, you will need to be present in a settlement conference before the actual payroll hearing. The settlement conference is an unofficial meeting that happens with you, your hirer, and the deputy labor commissary at the UELG office. The conference can start with all of your session in one room to discuss debatable issues. The work commissioner will put you and your hirer on separate premises, and go back and forth to debate issues and offers to communicate the settlement.

The settlement conference is not an evidentiary hearing, so you do not need to bring any eyewitnesses to testify. However, you have to bring copies of any documents that you have in aid of your claim. You should also be ready with the idea of how much you are authorized under the law.

Be Present In The Court

If you and your hirer can not reach an agreement at a settlement conference, your occasion will be appointed for court hearings. The hearings will take place at the UELG offices, at the office in the labor force of the Commissioner. Though the installation might seem unofficial, the appointment will be recorded and visitors will witness under oath.

The hearing, as a rule, starts with an introducing statement from the Commissioner. After this, you will have the chance to present your occasion. Labor Commissioner can also ask you problems, throughout this time, to make things clear. You must bring in three sets of all your papers (including originals). After you finish submitting your evidence, your hirer will have the opportunity to present his defense.

Your hirer may send documents or bring witnesses to provide evidence, such as an observer who set your hourly amount of pay. You will have a chance to question these witnesses too, so come with a pre-written scroll of questions.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock/goodluz

The post Preparation for a Wage Hearing in CA appeared first on UELG.

Severance pay and severance agreements are always a relevant topic no matter what part of the country a person might find themselves in. In this regard, California is a state where severance pay is not required under the acting law. But, for anyone who is in this type of a situation in California, there are still options that could result in severance pay given by a company to an employee. Here are the commonly asked questions about severance pay in California.

1. Being Entitled to any Form of Severance Pay

In those cases where an employee is there by their own will (so-called “at-will employee”) and if the working arrangements are to be stopped either because of the decision of the employer or the employee, there is no legal requirement for any form of a severance for the employee. This is the foundation of the law and it has to be kept in mind by all who are in this type of a situation.

2. If there is no Legal Requirement, why do some Employers offer it regardless?

In spite of the law that does not require it, there is a range of reasons why employers still provide it. Firstly, employers that have to scale down their business chose to cushion this troubling effect on their collective by providing the layoff employees with severance pays. Then, there are situations where the employer believes that the employee could take legal action against the business. To make sure this does not happen, severance pay could be handed out in exchange for an avoidance of any possible litigation. When a severance pay is accepted, the process acts as a de facto waiver of all potential claims the employees could have on the same business. This is a tried and tested way of avoiding time-consuming and costly litigations.

3. Do Employers need to Pay the Employee to attain the Release of all Claims

Generally, some form of severance pay has to be provided to the employee so that they release their claims. The same payment cannot be in the form that already has to be legally provided to the employee, including things like back pay, due performance bonuses or anything of that kind.

4. General Terms of the Severance Agreement

The severance agreements in California usually include civil code section 1542 that represents the waiver that releases all claims, both known and unknown. Aside from this, the agreement also includes confidentiality, exclusion of present or future employment, admission of liability, a return of all company property and a non-disparagement point that defines what job reference is provided to the employers.

5. What are the Special Considerations for Employees that are over 40 years old?

Those who are age 40 or older can be protected by OWBPA (Older Workers Benefit Protection Act). This Californian act offers the employees a chance to protect themselves against potential age discrimination. To make sure that the employees in this age group are provided the same protection, it is important that they consult legal counsel so that they do not lose their claim for a severance pay.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock/Kaspars Grinvalds

The post Essential Information on California’s Severance Pay Agreements appeared first on UELG.

California is one of the most protective states when it comes to the rights of an employee, including to be paid on time. The California laws on paydays and paychecks cover the information your employer must give with your paycheck, when you must be paid when you must get your final paycheck if you’re fired or quit the job, and what that final paycheck should include.

Unfortunately, in this imperfect world, some employers may break these fundamental laws and nobody likes dealing with issues at work. That is why you are likely to require a California employment attorney at some point and when it is time to make that phone call, we at UNITED EMPLOYEES LAW GROUP strive to make it as painless as possible.

California Payday Laws

Generally, employees in California have a right to be paid at least twice every month. The compensation earned from 1st to 15th of the month must be paid no later than the 26th day of the same month. On the other hand, the compensation earned from 16th of the month through the end of the month must be paid no later than the 10th day of the next month.

If an employer pays workers every week, every two weeks, or twice per month based on a different earning schedules, it may act under the California payday laws by paying workers for work performed within 7 days after the pay period has elapsed. For instance, an employer who pays his or her employees every 2 weeks is following the law as long as it pays the employees within a week after every two-week payroll period closes.

Employers must designate paydays which meet the requirements above and notify their employees of the date, time, and place they’ll be paid.

The laws give some exceptions for certain kinds of employees. For instance, administrative, executive, and professional staff (as defined by the overtime laws of California’s) may be paid only once a month, as long as they’re paid by 26th of the month and the paychecks includes their total salary for the month. Workers who work for a particular farm labor contractor must be paid each week.

Payroll Records Request

California workers are also entitled to scrutinize their payroll records within three weeks of a request to an employer. Moreover, you may request a copy of your payroll records, though your employer may charge you for affordable copying costs. In case your employer fails to provide you access to your records, you may be owed a penalty of $750 from your employer.

Rules for Final Paychecks

If you’re laid off, fired, or otherwise unwillingly separated from your job, you’re entitled to your final paycheck immediately (that’s, at the time of your layoff or firing). Your employer may not wait until the following scheduled payday or even the next calendar day to pay you what you’re owed. Your final paycheck must include all of your PTO or accrued, unused vacation time.

If you resign from your job and give your employer a notice of less than 72 hours, your employer must pay you within three days. If you provide your employer notice of at least 72 hours, you must be paid immediately on your final day of work. Like employees who’re laid off or fired, your final paycheck must include all of your PTO or accrued, unused vacation time.

To discourage the employers from delaying employees’ final paychecks, California allows any employee to obtain a “waiting time penalty” in the amount of his or her average wage for every day which the check is late, up to a maximum of thirty days.

The tenacity and experience of our employment attorneys can mean all the difference when it comes to the outcome of your California Labor Law Case. While several employment attorneys focus mainly on harassment or discrimination, our team knows all the ins and outs of the meal and break periods, overtime claims, and some other payroll related claims too.
We cover them all for a very good reason: many employers willing to break a single law are often willing to break another. Therefore, our California employment attorneys will examine your case from ALL angles in an effort to assist you to collect everything you’re owed.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock/Andrey_Popov

The post California Paycheck Laws appeared first on UELG.