Recent Blog Posts
Paid and Unpaid Paternity Leave for New Fathers
We have often written about maternity leave and the protections that women get for pregnancy, and any complications related to pregnancy. But fathers actually have rights as well. Both Federal and California law provide paternity leave rights to fathers of newborn children—rights that employers must provide. Requirements for Paternity Leave. You obviously need to… Read More »
Valuing Lost Stock or Equity as Damages in Wrongful Termination Cases
If you are wrongfully terminated at work, one of the major remedies the court can award you is the value and amount of any lost monetary damages that your wrongful termination may have cost you. But lost pay can be more than wages. In many cases, employers pay employees in stock options, which sometimes… Read More »
Understanding Your Rights to Severance Pay
If you take a job, one of the benefits of that job may be getting severance pay if you are terminated. Severance pay is provided to an employee when their employment ends. It usually is only payable when an employee is not fired for cause—that is, when there are layoffs, or company restructuring, or… Read More »
Can an Individual Be Liable to a Worker for Wage and Hour Law Violations?
It is a general concept in American law, in any state, that when a company does something wrong, it is the company that gets sued, and pays whatever is owed—not the individual owners or managers or wrongdoers of the company. This is a primary reason that people start companies in the first place. But… Read More »
Can Credit Card Processing Fees be Deducted From Tips You Have Earned?
If you are a tipped employee, and your customers pay by credit card, look at your pay stub, or whatever other document reflects the tips you have earned as a result of customers paying by credit card. Are you getting everything that you have earned—that is, the entirety of whatever amount customers have tipped… Read More »
How to Write a Reasonable Description for a Public Records Request
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) allows anyone to request access to records possessed by the U.S. Government’s Executive Branch, with a few exemptions. To make a successful public records request, it is essential that you contact the agency that possesses the desired records and provide them with a reasonable description of the records… Read More »
California May Enact Captive Audience Bill in the Workplace
The California governor has not yet signed, but is expected to sign, a measure passed by the California legislature, which is designed to avoid workers being discriminated against or indoctrinated. It’s called the Employer Intimidation Act, and if passed it could provide not only protections for workers—but a private right of action, allowing workers… Read More »
Pregnancy Protections for Workers May Not Extend to Fertilization Procedures
Pregnancy, and medical conditions related to pregnancy, are protected in the workplace. That means that your employer must accommodate your medical needs related to pregnancy and cannot discriminate against you for being or becoming pregnant in any way. But the wording of the law, which falls under California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA),… Read More »
Understanding the Same Decision Defense in Mixed Cause Employment Cases
As in other states, California allows employers who are being sued by employees to assert what is known as the same decision defense. As the name suggests, this is a defense that admits that the employer retaliated, or discriminated against the employee. However, the defense is, because of other factors, the end result—the firing… Read More »
Signs Your Employer is Using Pretext to Set You Up
Although there are many illegal reasons to fire or punish an employee, there are also plenty of perfectly legal reasons. One of those reasons is simply poor job performance, not doing what your superior says, violating company rules, or any of a number of things that common sense would tell you could get you… Read More »
