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As of January 1, 2000, employers in California who offer paid sick leave to their employees are required to allow those employees to use up to one-half of their yearly accrued sick leave to attend to a child, parent or spouse...
Feb 01, 2000
General Employment Issues
Second Circuit Holds that Telephone Monitoring in the Employer’s “Ordinary Course of Business” Does Not Violate Federal Wiretapping Laws
On January 21, 2000, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York affirmed summary judgment for an employer whose recording of employee telephone conversations had been challenged as a violation of federal...
Jan 12, 2000
General Employment Issues
Termination for Refusal to Sign Non-Compete Leads to Million Dollar Verdict
On December 20, 1999, a jury in San Francisco awarded $180,000 in compensatory damages and $1,080,000 in punitive damages to a former employee who was terminated by reason of her refusal to sign a non-compete...
The federal Civil Rights Act of 1991 amended Title VII to provide for a right to trial by jury, and to provide for recovery of punitive and compensatory damages. However, the Civil Rights Act of 1991 also established for a...
The federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (the “FMLA” or the “Act”), requires covered employers to provide eligible employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave during any 12-month period for...
Dec 31, 1999
Year In Review
Application of the Ellerth/Faragher Affirmative Defense in Harassment Cases in the Second and Ninth Circuits
JUNE 1998: U.S. SUPREME COURT ANNOUNCES A NEW AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE TO CLAIMS OF HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT SEXUAL HARASSMENT Many employers are already familiar with the pair of sexual harassment decisions announced by the U.S....
Dec 31, 1999
Year In Review
Individual Liability for Employment Discrimination in New York and California
Attorneys for discrimination plaintiffs often perceive a tactical advantage in naming as defendants not only the corporate employer but individual managers or supervisors as well. For example, naming individuals as defendants...
Dec 30, 1999
Employment Discrimination
California Labor Code Amendment Protects Employee Off-Duty Conduct
The California Labor Code gives the Labor Commissioner the authority to enforce a number of provisions of state labor and employment law, primarily involving wage and hour questions. Effective January 1, 2000, the Labor Code...
Dec 28, 1999
General Employment Issues
California Appellate Court Refuses To Enforce Employer’s Arbitration Policy
Many employers, seeking to avoid the risks and expense inherent in jury trials of wrongful discharge and discrimination claims, require their employees to enter into agreements under which all employment-related disputes are...
Oct 27, 1999
Employment Discrimination
New California Statute Limits Use of Salary as Termination Criterion
In conducting reductions in force, employers commonly select for termination employees whose salaries appear to be disproportionately higher than those of similarly-situated co-workers. A 1997 California court of appeal...