When the COVID-19 Pandemic brought new attention to occupational health and safety, Michael Sullivan and Associates became the go-to resource for clients and all California employers. Through countless free webinars and the acclaimed live e-book, Navigating COVID-19: A Legal Guide for California Employers, we guided employers through the ever-changing emergency mandates and the onslaught of new legislation.
In a highly-anticipated opinion released yesterday, Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that arbitration agreements between employers and employees can both send an employee’s claims under the Private Attorneys General Act, or PAGA, to binding private arbitration and prevent the employee from litigating Labor Code violations allegedly suffered by other employees. The immediate effect is a win for California employers with properly drafted arbitration agreements, but the opinion may signal the start of a new phase in the long-running arbitration wars rather than the decisive victory some employers hoped for.
On April 21, Cal/OSHA held a public hearing and re-adopted a modified version of the Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) that originally went into effect on November 30, 2020. This third revision took effect on May 6, 2022 and will remain in place through December 31, 2022. The revised ETS can be found here: https://www.dir.ca.gov/oshsb/documents/Apr212022-COVID-19-Prevention-Emergency-txtbrdconsider-3rd-Readoption.pdf.
The California HR (CAHR) conference is less than a month away – are you planning to attend? Michael Sullivan and Associates is a proud sponsor of this year's conference taking place at the Anaheim Convention Center May 8th through May 10th. CAHR22 offers education and an opportunity to network with HR professionals statewide. Hear speakers share their experiences on challenges affecting operations, regulatory changes, and best practices for managing human resources. PIHRA has designed this conference for both in-person and virtual attendees, so don’t miss out on the opportunity to earn continuing education credits and find empowerment among your community. To register for the conference, go to https://cahrconference.org.
A case currently pending in the Supreme Court of the United States could spell a big win for California employers this summer, allowing them to foreclose a wider range of group employee lawsuits using arbitration agreements.
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:
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 .
