In 2022, the California Legislature passed and Governor Newsom approved, Assembly Bill 2188 (AB 2188). Effective January 1, 2024, AB 2188 amends California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”) to make it unlawful for an employer to discriminate against a person in hiring, termination, or any term or condition of employment, or otherwise penalize a
Hiring
California Modifies Regulation for Considering Criminal History in Employment Decisions
The California Civil Rights Department recently modified the regulation (2 CCR § 11017.1) associated with California’s Fair Chance Act. The regulation addresses an employer’s restrictions and obligations for considering an applicant or employee’s criminal history. The modified regulation took effect on October 1, 2023.
Employers should be aware of the modifications to this…
Raines v. U.S. Healthworks Medical Group Rains Down Liability Under FEHA To Business-Entity Agents
On August 21, 2023, the California Supreme Court’s decision in Raines v. U.S. Healthworks Medical Group significantly expanded the scope of potential liability under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”) to an employer’s business-entity agents that have five or more employees.
Case Background and Analysis
Plaintiffs Kristina Raines and Darrick Figg brought a class…
Hiring Minors 101
The weather is getting warmer and the sun is getting brighter, and you know what that means–employers everywhere are calling their lawyers to ask how they can put teenagers on payroll this summer! Many employers that operate summer programming seek to hire minors as recreational leaders, day camp counselors, and the like, but find themselves…
How Does California’s New Pay Transparency Law Impact Your Organization?
While those of you in the public sector are accustomed to seeing salary information in job postings, now private employers who post jobs in California are required to post salary ranges in their job advertisements. Effective January 1, 2023, California expanded its pay transparency laws. The new law has two major components: 1) pay scale…
California’s New Pay Transparency Law
On September 27, 2022, California Governor Newson signed Senate Bill 1162, which is California’s new pay transparency and pay data disclosure law.
This new law will require nearly 200,000 California companies with 15 or more employees to include pay ranges in all job postings and advertisements, effective January 1, 2023. Also, private employers with 100 …
A Closer Look At The Restrictions On Hiring Retirees (And Also The Exceptions!)
This post appeared in August 2016. It has been reviewed and is up to date.
CalPERS issued a Circular Letter on July 12, 2016, which provided information on its compliance review process and its most common findings, including employing retired annuitants. In our practice, we have also observed some confusion surrounding the specifics on…
The DFEH Now Using Technology To Identify Unlawful Job Advertisements
In California, nearly 8 million of the state’s 40 million residents have a criminal record. Research has shown that when individuals with criminal records have access to gainful employment, it helps reduce recidivism. However, these individuals often face barriers to employment.
That is why on October 20, 2021, the California Department of Fair Employment…
Hiring the Best While Promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Public Sector Workforce
Over the last several years, virtually all levels of government have increasingly recognized the critical link between building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace and effectively meeting the needs of the communities they serve—in particular, historically underserved and marginalized communities.
At the federal level, the Biden Administration has issued several Executive Orders that recognize the…
Trouble-Shooting the Hiring Process for a Public Agency
This article was reviewed in August 2021 and is up-to-date.
The stock market has reached all-time highs and the economy in general continues to be strong. In this scenario, many public sector employers are hiring. Although this is certainly welcome news, the hiring process does, however, carry legal risks.
The following are six areas of…