Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
A Labor Department rule provides that when an employer fails to notify an employee that leave qualifies under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, the time off does not count toward the 12 weeks per year the employee is entitled to under the FMLA. Federal courts have split over whether this regulation is valid—and […]
For several years, the California Supreme Court has wrestled with the issue of when the employee of an independent contractor can sue the company that hired the contractor for on-the-job injuries rather than just collect workers’ compensation benefits. Now the high court has issued two new opinions further clarifying when you can be sued for […]
Suppose an employee shows up at work on her day off to see co-workers and gets injured when something falls on her. Could you be liable for damages? Or is workers’ compensation the employee’s only remedy? A new case provides some answers.
House Republicans have defeated a measure that would have forced insurers to cover mental health conditions to the same extent that they cover other medical problems. The provision, which the Senate had tacked on to a federal spending bill, would not have required employers to provide mental health coverage as part of employee benefits, but […]
Gov. Davis has signed a new measure, A.B. 1015, that creates new labor law protections for job applicants’ outside activities and political interests and strengthens remedies employees already have. The new law takes effect Jan. 1, 2002, and applies to most public and private employees with a few exceptions. We’ll cover the key points.
Gov. Davis has signed into law a sweeping measure that expands domestic partner rights on insurance, sick leave and other issues. The new law takes effect Jan. 1, 2002. Expanded Workplace Rights For Domestic Partners These are the measure’s key provisions that will affect employers: Domestic partner definition. Domestic partners will include opposite-sex couples if at […]
Several years ago, the federal appeals court covering California sent a shock wave throughout the employer community when it ruled that software giant Microsoft Corp. had to pay certain retroactive employee benefits to temporary workers improperly classified as independent contractors. Because misclassification problems are common, the decision signaled that many employers could be on the […]
Karla Schikore, a Bank of America employee, resigned and requested a lump-sum payment of her retirement benefits. She swore that she’d mailed the bank a form electing to receive lump-sum benefits more than a year before, as required under the terms of the bank’s retirement plan. Unfortu-nately, the bank said it had never received the […]
President Bush has proposed a new package of emergency grants and unemployment assistance to help states deal with increased unemployment following the Sept. 11 attacks. Workers in states where the total unemployment rate has jumped by 30% above the Sept. 11 level would be eligible for an additional 13 weeks of unemployment benefits, which would […]
Gov. Davis has acted on a number of employment-related bills passed by state lawmakers. Roundup Of New Laws