California Employment Law Blog

Hundreds of thousands of California independent contractors and gig workers will likely not have to reimburse the state for overpaid Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) benefits. The new COVID-19 stimulus package signed into law allows states to waive attempts to collect excessive PUA payments as long as workers meet two requirements: Their original PUA application was…

A nearly decade-long court battle ends as national department store chain Burlington Stores Inc. has agreed to pay almost $20 million for misclassifying workers to avoid paying them overtime. According to court records, roughly 1,630 employees will receive an average payment of $12,000 as part of the settlement. California workers are included under a second…

The November election appeared to provide some clarity over allowing companies like Lyft and Uber to avoid classifying their drivers as employees when voters approved Proposition 22. The measure sought to free these companies from providing benefits to their workers, such as overtime, unemployment and sick leave. However, the fight over protections for these workers…

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed nearly two dozen labor and employment bills in 2020, many of which go into effect on New Year’s Day. Some laws are in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, while others expand reporting deadlines and leave protections and rights for those working for large and small businesses. Coronavirus protections for workers While…

The U.S. women’s national soccer team (USWNT) has avoided a trial over four issues with the U.S. Soccer Federation as part of the team’s 2019 lawsuit alleging gender discrimination. As part of the settlement, U.S. Soccer has agreed to put new policies in place to improve the players’ working conditions, specifically hotel accommodations, travel, venues…

Three former executives for United Way Worldwide say the organization fired or bullied them in retaliation for addressing sexual harassment within one of the world’s largest nonprofits. According to their claims with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the women say the organization’s leadership abruptly terminated or forced them to leave after they reported misconduct.…

For decades, farmworkers in California were excluded from most state and federal wage and hour laws requiring employers to pay overtime for time worked exceeding 40 hours per week or eight hours per day. Since 1976, agricultural employers were only required to pay OT to those working more than 10 hours a day or 60…

California voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 22 on election day after an aggressive record-setting $204 million campaign bankrolled by Uber, Lyft and other app-based companies. Nearly six in 10 voters favored the measure that allows these companies to classify drivers as independent contractors, denying them benefits, such as overtime, paid sick days and even minimum wage.…

A lawsuit filed by a former Uber driver from San Diego claims the ride-sharing company’s system to rate its drivers is racially biased. Thomas Liu was fired in October 2015 when his star rating fell below 4.6. In its app, Uber asks passengers to rate drivers on a scale of one to five. Lawsuit claims…

The California First District Court of Appeal says ride-sharing companies Uber and Lyft must treat Golden State drivers as employees and provide them with the appropriate pay and benefits. The ruling affirms state court actions and legislators’ beliefs that gig workers do not have the independence necessary to be considered independent contractors. Ruling decides lawsuit,…