California Labor Law Challenges and Solutions
California Labor Law Challenges and Solutions
Although the Fair Labor Standards Act sets a minimum standard of protection for employees working in the USA, individual states are permitted to extend the Act to provide a higher degree of protection to employees in that state. California has taken full advantage of that facility, and there are many aspects of this act that California has applied more liberally than practically any other state.
Take overtime law for example. California law requires an employer to pay an employee overtime after 8 hours work in one day at 1.5 times the normal rate, and after 12 hours work in any one day at twice the standard rate. However, this does not apply to ‘exempt’ employees, such as those involved in managerial or intellectual work. Federal law only requires time and a half to be paid for any time worked over 40 hours in a week.
The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) differs profoundly from the federal law, particularly in employment discrimination law where it is much wider reaching and more rigorous than federal law. A case in point occurred recently, where an employee of a prestigious California hotel filed a discrimination lawsuit against his employer on the basis of sex, and also for retaliation, in violation of the FEHA.
The act forbids discrimination against an employee on the basis of sex, race, color, age, religion and other grounds, and illegalizes retaliation by the employer against an employee carrying out a ‘protected’ activity such as filing a charge of discrimination. There are a number of defined protected activities, and this act is likely beyond the capability of the average human resources department of most companies to handle. This is the sort of case best passed on to a human resources (HR) consulting firm.
The case, Jones v. The Lodge at Torrey Pines Partnership, had originally been heard in front of a jury, and debated whether or not an individual could be held personally responsible for proceedings relating to retaliation against an employee. The jury decided for the plaintiff and awarded compensation against the Lodge and the supervisor accused of the retaliation. However, their verdict was overruled by the judge who stated that there was insufficient evidence to prove the case against the supervisor that an adverse reaction had been carried out for reasons of discrimination or retaliation for the sexual orientation of the plaintiff.
The judge stated that individuals (the supervisor) cannot be held liable for retaliation in the same way that they can be for harassment. The case went to the Court of Appeal, which disagreed with the judge, and stated that individuals can be held responsible for retaliation. The case ultimately reached the California Supreme Court which disagreed, stating that the individual cannot be held responsible..
What chance does company human resource personnel have in correctly interpreting law if even the law courts disagree? It is next to impossible for a company in California to apply company policy when the law itself is so difficult to interpret that judges, Courts of Appeal, and the Supreme Court disagree. The labor laws of California are too difficult to understand for a company to rely on non-specialized personnel to manage their labor relations policies. The consequences of getting it wrong could be catastrophic. Many employers are feeling frustrated with this lack of clarity and constant risk of violating the law, and are turning to experts in the Human Resources Outsourcing industry for help.
While many businesses employ highly educated staff, most do not have the experience to understand the finer points of law. It is not just the understanding that matters here, it is knowing the right course of action to take in such circumstances. Perhaps things could have been done differently in the Jones v. The Lodge case to prevent it from reaching court, or perhaps the supervisor could have been better trained by the company.
Whatever the answer, you are more likely to come to the right solution with the help of professionals who manage these complex issues on a daily basis. California labor law is sufficiently complex for your company to turn to the professionalism and expertise of a Human Resources Outsourcing firm to keep you out of trouble. HR outsourcing is not as expensive as you might believe, especially when you consider the alternative.
California Labor Law Challenges and Solutions - To learn more about this author, visit Ari Rosenstein's Website.
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Being an employer is a daunting task. Hundreds of employment regulations, insurance guidelines, Senate bills and Federal Acts (such as FMLA, FLSA, HIPAA, TEFRA and FEHA, to name a few) distract business owners from focusing on their core operations and profitability. In particular, California employers need to be aware that California Labor Law differs from federal law in significant ways that can make life even more difficult, if not downright treacherous, for businesses with limited human resources expertise.
Although the Fair Labor Standards Act sets a minimum standard of protection for employees working in the USA, individual states are permitted to extend the Act to provide a higher degree of protection to employees in that state. California has taken full advantage of that facility, and there are many aspects of this act that California has applied more liberally than practically any other state.
Take overtime law for example. California law requires an employer to pay an employee overtime after 8 hours work in one day at 1.5 times the normal rate, and after 12 hours work in any one day at twice the standard rate. However, this does not apply to ‘exempt’ employees, such as those involved in managerial or intellectual work. Federal law only requires time and a half to be paid for any time worked over 40 hours in a week.
The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) differs profoundly from the federal law, particularly in employment discrimination law where it is much wider reaching and more rigorous than federal law. A case in point occurred recently, where an employee of a prestigious California hotel filed a discrimination lawsuit against his employer on the basis of sex, and also for retaliation, in violation of the FEHA.
The act forbids discrimination against an employee on the basis of sex, race, color, age, religion and other grounds, and illegalizes retaliation by the employer against an employee carrying out a ‘protected’ activity such as filing a charge of discrimination. There are a number of defined protected activities, and this act is likely beyond the capability of the average human resources department of most companies to handle. This is the sort of case best passed on to a human resources (HR) consulting firm.
The case, Jones v. The Lodge at Torrey Pines Partnership, had originally been heard in front of a jury, and debated whether or not an individual could be held personally responsible for proceedings relating to retaliation against an employee. The jury decided for the plaintiff and awarded compensation against the Lodge and the supervisor accused of the retaliation. However, their verdict was overruled by the judge who stated that there was insufficient evidence to prove the case against the supervisor that an adverse reaction had been carried out for reasons of discrimination or retaliation for the sexual orientation of the plaintiff.
The judge stated that individuals (the supervisor) cannot be held liable for retaliation in the same way that they can be for harassment. The case went to the Court of Appeal, which disagreed with the judge, and stated that individuals can be held responsible for retaliation. The case ultimately reached the California Supreme Court which disagreed, stating that the individual cannot be held responsible..
What chance does company human resource personnel have in correctly interpreting law if even the law courts disagree? It is next to impossible for a company in California to apply company policy when the law itself is so difficult to interpret that judges, Courts of Appeal, and the Supreme Court disagree. The labor laws of California are too difficult to understand for a company to rely on non-specialized personnel to manage their labor relations policies. The consequences of getting it wrong could be catastrophic. Many employers are feeling frustrated with this lack of clarity and constant risk of violating the law, and are turning to experts in the Human Resources Outsourcing industry for help.
While many businesses employ highly educated staff, most do not have the experience to understand the finer points of law. It is not just the understanding that matters here, it is knowing the right course of action to take in such circumstances. Perhaps things could have been done differently in the Jones v. The Lodge case to prevent it from reaching court, or perhaps the supervisor could have been better trained by the company.
Whatever the answer, you are more likely to come to the right solution with the help of professionals who manage these complex issues on a daily basis. California labor law is sufficiently complex for your company to turn to the professionalism and expertise of a Human Resources Outsourcing firm to keep you out of trouble. HR outsourcing is not as expensive as you might believe, especially when you consider the alternative.
California Labor Law Challenges and Solutions - To learn more about this author, visit Ari Rosenstein's Website.
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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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