On Tuesday a deal was struck between Gov. Newsom and California lawmakers to provide a new Supplemental Sick Leave similar to the one that expired on September 30. Those who follow my webinars may recall I predicted this would occur in delayed fashion after the 9/30 expiration (e.g. the March 2021 retroactive extension), but this was well beyond any predicted delay. Although not yet in final form, here are the components we expect:
It has long been recognized that an employee's ability to participate vocational retraining is a significant factor that must be considered in assessing the worker's permanent disability. (LeBoeuf v. WCAB (1983) 48 CCC 587, 597.) An employee's inability to compete in the open labor market could support an award of permanent total disability. Even though vocational rehabilitation was repealed and replaced with the supplemental job displacement benefit, in Ogilvie v. WCAB (2011) 76 CCC 624, the Court of Appeal held that an employee could still rebut a scheduled rating by establishing that he or she was not amenable to rehabilitation.
SPECIAL REPORT
Effective Jan. 1, 2022, the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) amended its Rule of Practice and Procedure to allow for remote hearings, electronic filings, and electronic service. The changes made permanent many of the temporary changes implemented by the WCAB.
On June 1, 2021, the 6th Appellate District Court of Appeal certified for publication its decision in Applied Materials et al. v. WCAB.
In that case, the 6th District Court of Appeal issued a lengthy 73-page decision addressing multiple issues raised by the parties. However, the decision is most significant for two issues:
Because of the backlog of medical-legal evaluations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Division of Workers' Compensation (DWC) adopted emergency regulations for medical-legal evaluations and reporting. The regulations became effective May 14, 2020, and originally were set to expire March 12, 2021. But they have been extended until Oct. 12, 2021.[1]
Your employees are what make your company operate so efficiently. At this tumultuous time in world history, some businesses are taking advantage of their workforce. However, the best companies are always and will always put the rights of their employees first. This can be in the form of simple policy change or may even include complete overhaul of their processes. In today’s blog, Michael Sullivan & Associates, the top-rated law firm in California, will be going over some of the ways companies can protect their employees and ultimately strengthen their business through a strong bond with their workforce .
Unfortunately, not every workplace is always the healthiest. Retaliation is usually one of the highest complaints filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). While this complaint is usually paired with other complaints, such as sexual harassment or discrimination, retaliation is still one of the most noted complaints across all industries. In today’s blog, Michael Sullivan & Associates, the top-rated law firm in California, will help you better understand how you and your company can react to employee retaliation in the workplace. Keep reading to learn more, or contact MS&A to schedule an appointment with our employment law team today.
On March 19, 2021, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 95 into law requiring most California employers to provide up to 80 hours of COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave. The law went into effect on March 29, 2021, but the requirements applied retroactively to Jan. 1, 2021. So, if an employee was eligible, an employer retroactively must pay the COVID-19 supplemental leave when the employee requests it, either orally or in writing. We published a detailed exposition of this new law last week.
