New Employment Laws 2013
Senate Bans Discrimination Against Gay and Transgender Workers
The Senate passed a historic piece of gay rights legislation that would ban workplace discrimination against gay and transgender employees. A 64-32 vote, the passage of this legislation marks another milestone victory for the gay rights movement in America. The 64 to 32 vote to approve the Employment Non-Discrimination Act marked the first time federal…
Read MoreDomestic Workers Bill of Rights, Minimum Wage Increase, and More, in Store for California Employees Beginning January 2014
In October 2013, Governor Brown signed several significant bills that increase and protect the earnings of low-wage and immigrant workers. After years of stagnation and prior unsuccessful attempts, the state minimum wage will finally see an increase after the approval of AB 10 (Asm. Alejo). The new law raises the $8 an hour minimum wage…
Read More8 Significant Employment-Related Bills Signed by Governor Brown in 2013
As of today, the Governor has signed 8 significant employment-related bills into law, covering: Minimum wage increase, from $8 to $10/hour, over two years Change in definition of sexual harassment to provide broader protection for employees Recovery of defense attorney’s fees in wage claims only if bad faith Expansion of coverage of Paid Family Leave Mandatory…
Read MoreRetaliating Against an Undocumented Worker Who Complains about Unlawful Activity isn’t Tolerated in California
On October 5, 2013, Governor Brown signed SB 666 (Steinberg) into law. SB 666 does the following: It overturns MacDonald v. State of California (discussed here), in which the Court of Appeal held that an employee must exhaust the administrative remedy set forth in Labor Code section 98.7 before pursuing a civil claim for retaliatory discharge…
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