By Telly Tasakos There is no shortage of HR technology available in the market to streamline HR functions. HR Professionals might use as many as 10 different software programs in their day to day work. From recruitment software, job boards, benefits software,...
By Stacey Sommerhauser, SPHR-CA, SHRM-SCP The state of California continues to pass legislation that protects individuals’ pay and more so, how an employer determines employees’ pay. Employers must be uber cautious in making job offers and subsequent salary changes...
By Susan Breslauer, SPHR-CA, SHRM-SCP Vacation and paid time off (PTO) are optional benefits, not required by law in California. However, if vacation/PTO is provided to employees, it is considered a deferred wage. (PTO is usually a combination of vacation and sick...
By Susan Breslauer, SPHR-CA, SHRM-SCP Employers breathed a sigh of relief at the recent court ruling that the Department of Justice overstepped its bounds last year in raising the minimum salary for certain exempt employees to $913/week ($47,476 per year). This is...
Kim Silvers, SPHR- CA, SHRM-SCP As the triple digit temperatures fade in Sacramento, the state legislature wraps up its bills for the Governor’s signature or veto. We watch the employment related bills closely throughout the year and call our state Senator and...
By John Wood The latest edition of The Betterly Report noted that, when it comes to Employment Practices litigation risk, “The larger employer is much more likely to transfer risk than are smaller employers. Ironically, it is the smaller employer that probably needs...
By Kim Silvers, SPHR-CA, SHRM-SCP California employers who have employees working beyond a regular five-day schedule will be happy to see the California Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Mendoza v. Nordstrom. Although Nordstrom may have felt like it...
By Susan Breslauer, SPHR-CA, SHRM SCP New California regulations entitled “Consideration of Criminal History in Employment Decisions Regulations”, will limit an employer’s right to use criminal background information in hiring and other employment...
By Kim Silvers, SPHR-CA, SHRM-SCP California employers received another surprise court decision requiring commissioned sales employees to be paid separately for their state-required rest breaks. This decision is somewhat related to earlier decisions...
By Susan Breslauer, SPHR-CA, SHRM SCP By January 22, 2017, all employers should be using the updated Form I-9, dated November 14, 2016, published by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services. The new form has an expiration date of August 31, 2019. All...
By Jennifer L. Lippi, J.D., SPHR There are several local laws and a possible new state law that severely limit employer inquiry into criminal convictions. On January 22, 2017, Los Angeles became the second city in California, after San Francisco, to...
All Gender Restrooms Are on the Way If you’ve combed through our 2017 employment law update, you’ll find a new bill (Assembly Bill 1732) tucked into the middle of this tome that requires all single-user toilet facilities be identified as an all-gender...
What a Year By Kim Silvers, SPHR-CA, SHRM-SCP One of our roles as HR consultants is to ensure our clients have resources and knowledge back-up to stay out of employment court. We do a pretty good job of that and I’m proud of the ethical employers we...
By Cami McLaren The best way to be successful – really successful – is to plan for your success. No matter how you define success, you will be vastly more likely to achieve it if you are intentional. Starting now. In this article, I will give you some...
By Cami McLaren This will be a 3-part series on the topic of negativity in the workplace – seeing it for what it is; deciding what to do; and a case study. Part I – Why it is Contagious When I teach classes to management, often I hear about the negativity...
By Stacey Sommerhauser, SPHR-CA, SHRM- SCP We often receive questions from CA employers regarding when to pay non-exempt (hourly) employees for travel time. Here’s a “quick and dirty” reference to begin to understand the complexities of this additional...
By Kim Silvers, SPHR-CA, SHRM-SCP, Should California employers put the brakes on preparing for the December 1, 2016, new exempt salary increase threshold? You may have heard that 21 state attorneys general and governors filed a lawsuit against the...
In a somewhat nuanced read on whether California employers are required to offer employees seating while performing their jobs, the CA Supreme Court ruled that the nature of the work at a given location must be considered, rather than a holistic view of...
By Helen Horyza Having a team of highly motivated employees is a prized objective for any leader. It’s also maddeningly unpredictable. The “platinum perspective” offers a clear strategy to achieve optimum productivity, retention of valued talent and, over...
By Kim Silvers, SPHR-CA If you have piece rate workers (those employees paid X dollars/cents for the production of a widget, rather than an hourly rate) you already know that AB 1513 added additional steps for California employers to pay and track...