Employers who incorrectly classify employees as independent contractors or non-employees are responsible for paying the taxes that were not previously withheld. The Internal Revenue Service may also seek penalties for the unpaid taxes. The IRS just announced a new program that allows qualifying employers the opportunity to get into compliance by making a minimal payment [...]
Archive for the ‘Litigation’ Category
IRS Announces Plan to Limit Exposure for Misclassification Claims
Posted in Hiring, Independent Contractors, Litigation, Policies & Best Practices, Wage & Hour, tagged California, East Bay, employer employee relationship, Employment Law, Employment Lawyer, Hiring, I-9, independent contractor, San Jose, Silicon Valley, South Bay on September 28, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
New Laws Regarding California Employers and Employees
Posted in Arbitration, Disability Discrimination and Failure to Accommodate, Discrimination, Harassment or Retaliation, Hiring, Litigation, New Laws, Sick Leave, tagged ab 889, California, employer employee relationship, Employment Law, harassment, holiday pay, labor code, Silicon Valley, statute of limitations on September 14, 2011 | 1 Comment »
There are several new laws and amendments currently under consideration by the Governor of California, as well as the legislature. The Recorder reports that three bills, AB 267, AB 325, and AB 559, are currently sitting before the Governor Brown. AB 267 prohibits “choice of law” or “forum selection” clauses in employment contracts if those [...]
DFEH Announces Biggest Administrative Award Ever
Posted in Disability Discrimination and Failure to Accommodate, Discrimination, Harassment or Retaliation, Hiring, Litigation, Medical Leaves of Absence, Policies & Best Practices, Sick Leave, Verdicts, tagged California, cancer, dfeh, Discrimination, East Bay, employer employee relationship, Employment Law, Employment Lawyer, harassment, leave of absence, medical leave, sick leave, verdict on September 13, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
On September 12, 2011, the DFEH issued the following press release: State Department of Fair Employment and Housing Achieves Historic Victory Electrical Supply Company Ordered to Pay $846,300 for Firing Cancer Survivor ELK GROVE, CA – The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) today announced its largest-ever administrative award of $846,300 against electrical [...]
Follow Up on Current Version of AB 889 – Domestic Workers Bill of Rights
Posted in Announcements, Hiring, Independent Contractors, Litigation, New Laws, Policies & Best Practices, tagged ab 889, California, East Bay, employer employee relationship, Employment Law, Employment Lawyer, exemption, independent contractor, labor code, overtime, San Jose, Silicon Valley, wage and hour on August 12, 2011 | 2 Comments »
I hope you were able to listen to the discussion this morning on KQED regarding the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights. Unfortunately I was not able to address an area of the law that gives me the greatest concern: This bill would unduly broaden the definition of employer, unnecessarily increase who will be considered an [...]
Sabbatical or Vacation? You Tell Me.
Posted in Litigation, Policies & Best Practices, Sick Leave, Vacation, Wage & Hour, tagged accrued, California, East Bay, employer employee relationship, paid time off, pto, sabbatical, vacation on August 8, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Most employers have some sort of vacation policy. Under California law, if an employee has unused accrued vacation at the end of his/her employment, the employer must pay out the unused but accrued vacation. Several companies also offer a sabbatical program, which typically offers a longer period of paid time off after a particular length [...]
Can I Get My Fees, Please?
Posted in Attorney Client Relationship, Litigation, Verdicts, tagged appeal, attorneys fees, California, Discrimination, East Bay, employer employee relationship, Employment Lawyer, expense of litigation, indemnification, litigation, San Jose, South Bay on July 28, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals says the answer may be up to the trial judge. In a Fair Housing Act suit, the Ninth Circuit held that the district court properly relied on its own knowledge of customary rates charged by attorneys and its own experience concerning reasonable and proper fees in making an award [...]
Now Seeing Clients in the East Bay
Posted in Announcements, Litigation, Seminars, tagged Alameda county, California, Discrimination, East Bay, Employment Law, Employment Lawyer, harassment, independent contractor, new office, overtime, San Jose, Silicon Valley, wage and hour on July 18, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
I am pleased to announce that Phillip J. Griego & Associates is now available to meet with clients in the East Bay Area. While we have served Alameda County for some time, we will now have a physical presence in Pleasanton, California. Initially, we will have an attorney available to meet with clients on Fridays, [...]
Fair Employment and Housing Commission Is Being Eliminated
Posted in Age Discrimination, Disability Discrimination and Failure to Accommodate, Discrimination, Harassment or Retaliation, Hiring, Litigation, tagged California, Discrimination, Employment Law, Employment Lawyer, harassment, Hiring, independent contractor, San Jose, Silicon Valley on May 17, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Governor Jerry Brown issued the 2011/12 May Budget Revision (May Revise) in an attempt to reduce the multi-billion dollar deficit. As part of the revised budget the Governor eliminates and/or consolidatse many governmental programs. Under the revised budget, the Fair Employment and Housing Commission (FEHC)—the civil rights agency with administrative adjudication and regulatory responsibility—will be [...]
3 Interesting Overtime Results
Posted in Litigation, Verdicts, Wage & Hour, tagged California, employer employee relationship, Employment Law, Employment Lawyer, Labor Code 513, meal break, minimum wage, overtime, San Jose, wage and hour on February 15, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
$4,385,000 settlement in class action case against DIRECTV, Inc: Michael Cicero, on behalf of himself and other installers, filed a class action lawsuit against DIRECTV alleging he and other installers were not paid overtime and were not paid for time spent driving to and from installation sites. Cicero alleged installers were paid based on the [...]
Explicit Mutual Wage Agreement Can Set Hourly Rate
Posted in Litigation, New Laws, Policies & Best Practices, Wage & Hour, tagged 515, California, contracts, East Bay, employer employee relationship, employment contract, Employment Law, Employment Lawyer, exempt, exemption, independent contractor, labor code, minimum wage, mutual wage agreement, non-exempt, overtime, salary, Silicon Valley on February 8, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
The general rule in California is that a non-exempt employee’s salary only compensates the employee for the regular hours worked. This means if you pay an employee a set salary each week the employee is still entitled to overtime if s/he works more than 8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a week. [...]
