Orange County Employment Lawyers Blog

Changes to Discipline Reporting Requirements in CA

July 5, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

Getting fired from a job is never a good thing. Not only are you out of a job, but you now also may have trouble getting a job in the future, because many job applications ask if you have ever been terminated from any employment position in the past. Even if you were not terminated but subject to formal discipline at your past job, you may have to report that on a new application.

According to a recent news article form the Sacramento Bee, those applying for state jobs in California may no longer have to report past discipline on job applications and would be eligible to reapply for other state positions without disclosing past discipline, under a proposed piece of legislation. The new bill is entitled Assembly bill AB 466 and is currently being pushed forward with support of various public employee unions. The bill would allow state employees who are fired from their jobs and had agreed to never seek employment with a particular agency to apply for state employment in the future and not have to disclose the disciplinary settlement on the application. Continue Reading ›

Gay Rights Advocates Look to Ending Job Discrimination

July 3, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

With the Supreme Court recently declaring that marriage is a constitutionally protected right, and that same-sex couples have a right to marry in every state in the Union, it would be easy for people think that gay rights organizations have won and there is nothing left to fight for of equal urgency and importance. While this was a huge victory for supporters of gay marriage, it is not the only area in which same-sex couples and members of the gay community were subject to discrimination.

Employment is one area where there is still a great deal of discrimination against gay employees and gay job applicants, and, according to a recent article in the San Francisco Chronicle, many LGBT activists have already begun gearing up for the next big challenge of fighting discrimination in the workplace. Continue Reading ›

Mandatory Paid Sick Leave in California

July 1, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

While there has obviously been a lot of discussion about the increase in minimum wage in the city of Los Angeles and the state of California, the amount of money an employee earns per hour is not the only thing that determines whether an employee can live off his or her salary.

Benefits can actually be equally as important or even more important than weekly wages, because benefits can significantly reduce the amount of expenses an employee has and can also provide a means for an employee to take care of his or her family. Continue Reading ›

Los Angeles Workers Sue McDonald’s for Age Discrimination

June 30, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

According to a recent feature from the Los Angeles Daily News, seven former employees a McDonald’s restaurant located in the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles are suing the company for age discrimination in relation to their employment.

The plaintiffs, six women and one man, alleged in their complaint they were all fired by McDonald’s because they were over the age of 40. Specifically, they are alleging counts of age discrimination, wrongful termination, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The suit is filed in the Superior Court in Los Angeles, and plaintiffs have not specified an exact amount of damages.

Plaintiffs claim their troubles started while they were all working at the restaurant. They stated they were all hard working employees with no reason for disciplinary action including termination. They further claim they were all fired suddenly as part of scheme to replace them with younger workers. Continue Reading ›

California Labor Law to Require Anti-Bullying Training

June 29, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

Bullying has become recognized as a major problem in our society. Most people think of bullying in terms of schools and teenagers, but bullying is a serious problem that happens in many different settings, including during the course of employment.

According to a recent news article form The Press Enterprise, a new California law requires anti-bullying training for employee supervisors. Employers are already required to undergo mandatory sexual harassment avoidance training, but the new law will add anti-bullying training to the existing program. Continue Reading ›

California Labor Official Finds Uber Drivers are Employees

June 27, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

There has been a growing debate between Uber and its drivers at to whether they are employees or independent contractors. The company would like to have all drivers classified as independent contractors. This would mean they do not have to pay the workers any benefits, they do not have to pay overtime wages, they do not have to pay any portion of a worker’s federal employment tax, and they do not have to pay workers’ compensation if a driver is injured while driving for them.

In addition to having to pay less money, the company can also claim it is not liable if an Uber driver is held responsible for a car accident that results in personal injury. There is a long-standing provision in our legal system, which holds employers liable for negligent conduct committed by their employees in many situations. However, if the worker is an independent contractor, there is generally no liability on behalf of the company paying the at-fault contractor. Continue Reading ›

Can you Get Fired for Using Medical Marijuana?

June 24, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

Legalization of marijuana for medical or recreational purposes has been occurring in states across the county. While people can now use medical cannabis, or even use marijuana recreationally in more places than ever before, without the fear of being arrested, there are new issues involving employment consequences for employees who test positive for marijuana.

One case that has been making headlines involved a recent decision by the Colorado Supreme Court, which ruled that a business has the right to terminate employees who use marijuana during non-working time, even if those employees have a current and valid prescription for medical cannabis use, according to a recent news article from the Los Angeles Times. While this may make sense to some, including members of Colorado’s highest court, it is dissimilar from other employment law decisions. Continue Reading ›

Report: Orange County Has More Jobs than Pre-Recession Era

June 21, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

According to a recent news feature from Orange County Register, the employment rate in Orange County has finally recovered from the Great Recession and is actually higher than it was in 2006.

The current number of jobs county officials have provided is 1,548,800. This number is nearly 3,000 more jobs than the county had in December of 2006, when employment reached its peak prior to falling off in the last major recession. Not only is the number of jobs in Orange County continuing to grow, there is a faster rate of growth in this county than the state and national averages. Specifically, in Orange County, we are currently experiencing a year over year growth in employment at 3.4 percent, as compared to the statewide average of three percent and the national average of just over two percent. Continue Reading ›

Employment Problems for Stagehands in California

June 18, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

According to a recent news feature from the Los Angeles Times, a 28-year-old stagehand is speaking out against the Beverley Hills-based concert promoter for whom he has worked. This company is one of the largest of its kind in the nation and handles concert promotion around the nation.

The employee interviewed for the article says this company “condemns” stagehands to poverty wages while also depriving them of healthcare and retirement benefits. He also says the day-to-day working conditions are unsafe and unhealthy. He claims the company provides virtually no safety training and doesn’t even provide workers with drinking water during their shifts.

One of the main reasons for this situation, he says, is because the concert promoter uses another company as a subcontractor to hire stagehands and technical assistance staff. This subcontractor hires its workers as independent contractors and, therefore, claims it doesn’t have to pay them benefits or adhere to many employment regulations since the workers are not employees. This particular company has only 12 employees at its various regional offices, yet contracts with hundreds of stagehands in each region. Continue Reading ›

Uber Drivers: Employees or Independent Contractors?

June 15, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

The economy is doing better than it has in years. One of the main benefits of a stronger economy is a lower rate of unemployment.

As it turns out, employment is up in California and across the nation. This will in turn drive the economy further, as people will have more disposable income to spend on consumer products.

However, this recent upturn in the local and national economy is somewhat different than previous periods of economic prosperity. One major difference has to with an increase in the type of employment we are seeing. In the past, greater production lead to more manufacturing jobs. When the economy shifted to outsourced production and services in the 1990s, we saw more sales and marketing jobs and other service-based forms of employment.