employment attorney in L.A.

Court: Franchisees Not Employees of National Chain

April 13, 2018 | by Nassiri Law

They might share a name, hours, and overarching rules, but according to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, 7-Eleven franchisees are not direct employees of 7-Eleven. In the original employment lawsuit complaint, filed by a group of four franchisees, plaintiffs pointed to 7-Eleven’s restrictive rules, alleging they were unable to run a truly independent franchise and therefore qualified them as employees of the parent company. But the court ruled plaintiffs did not sufficiently demonstrate an employee-employer relationship. Our employment attorneys experienced in wage and hour lawsuits know this could set a significant precedent for current and future cases involving franchises.

According to National Law Review, plaintiffs attempted to make a case based on a few factors:

The requirement that franchisees remain open 364 days a year for 24 hours a day.
7-Eleven distributes payments to all employees.
7-Eleven sets rules for pay practices, discipline, terminations, and performance appraisals.

“Ban the Box” Laws Advancing Across the Country

April 13, 2017 | by Nassiri Law

For anyone who has ever been convicted of a felony, even if they have done their time or finished probation so they are not long “on papers,” they know just how difficult it can be to a get a job. This is a problem for convicted workers in need of a job, but it is also a problem for society.

The reason it has become increasingly clear that banning convicted felons from working is problematic is that a lack of employment opportunities is one of the biggest contributors to recidivism. How can we expect most of the people who are released from prison to stay on the straight and narrow and not commit any future crimes if they have no means of supporting themselves or their families? Even public assistance may not be an option, because many state and federal programs across the nation ban convicted felons. Continue Reading ›

California Farmworkers’ Union Brings Fight to DC

May 23, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

California has a very diverse economy, and this is one of the reasons it is such a great place to live. In terms of jobs, there are a variety of different sectors and opportunities not available to residents of other states. Not only do we have the world’s leading computer design and software industry located in Silicon Valley, but we have large amounts of farmland on which a large portion of our nation’s food supply is produced each year.

With all of these farms and agricultural industries within our state’s borders, there are a lot of jobs available for farmworkers. However, in addition to great opportunity for farmworkers, we also see many farmworkers being taken advantage of by employers who care more about making money than they do about farmworker safety, health, and quality of life.

According to a recent news article from The Daily Caller, a decent sized crowd of California farm worker union supporters showed in Washington, DC to protest what is happening in relation to a California farmworker labor dispute. Continue Reading ›