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Author Archive
PERB Rules Employees Entitled to Reasonable Paid Released Time to Prepare for Negotiations
April 3, 2019 by
Andrew Baker
Most of California’s public sector labor relations statutes require employers to grant employees reasonable released time to participate in the meet and confer process. In 1978, PERB issued a decision that noted – as an… Read More
Governor Signs Trio of New Anti-Harassment Laws
October 24, 2018 by
Andrew Baker
Governor Brown on September 30 signed three new bills addressing sexual harassment in the workplace. Significant features of the three bills, all of which are effective January 1, 2019, include the following.New Training: SB 1343… Read More
Business Operator Individually Liable for Wage & Hour Penalties After Business Goes Bankrupt
October 18, 2018 by
Andrew Baker
A California Court of Appeal ruled last month that former employees of an Italian restaurant that went bankrupt after trial may recover from the restaurant’s operator civil penalties and attorneys’ fees for wage and hour… Read More
NLRB Orders Employer to Rescind Enrollment in E-Verify
September 20, 2018 by
Andrew Baker
Employers are permitted, but not obligated, to enroll in the federal government’s E-Verify program to confirm that employees are authorized to work in the U.S. Because enrollment in the E-Verify program is discretionary, not mandatory,… Read More
Labor Day 2018 – Business As Usual Will Not Work
August 31, 2018 by
Andrew Baker
The 2016 Trump election, expanding income inequality, and deep dissatisfaction with the economy, notwithstanding historic low unemployment rates, signal troubled times, and times for big thinking and big action for change. This goes for labor… Read More
Cal Supreme Court Deals Blow to the “Independent Contractor” Scam
May 3, 2018 by
Andrew Baker
On April 30, the California Supreme Court issued a crushing blow to the “gig economy.” In Dynamex Operations West v. Lee, the Court imposed a standard that will make it much harder for Uber and… Read More
Labor Day 2017: A Look to the Future (Part Three)
September 4, 2017 by
Andrew Baker
In the first two pieces in this series, we took a look at labor’s past, going all the way back to 1877. We’ve seen that starting with the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act in 1947,… Read More
Labor Day 2017: A Look to the Past (Part Two)
by
Andrew Baker
In the first installment of this piece, we looked at the Great Strike of 1877 and the U.S. Supreme Court’s approval of the National Labor Relations Act in 1937. Passage of the NLRA in 1935… Read More
Labor Day 2017: A Look to the Past (Part One)
September 1, 2017 by
Andrew Baker
Labor Day traditionally is the time to reflect on the state of the American labor movement, and Labor Day 2017 brings an opportunity to mark the anniversaries of several events in American history instrumental to… Read More
You Say “Confer,” I Say “Consult.” Let’s Not Call the Whole Thing Off
March 17, 2017 by
Andrew Baker
The Meyers-Milias-Brown Act imposes on covered public employers an obligation both to “meet and confer” and to “consult” with recognized employee unions. Do the different words mean there are two different bargaining obligations? Not really… Read More
PERB Rules Employees Entitled to Reasonable Paid Released Time to Prepare for Negotiations
April 3, 2019 by Andrew Baker
Most of California’s public sector labor relations statutes require employers to grant employees reasonable released time to participate in the meet and confer process. In 1978, PERB issued a decision that noted – as an… Read More
Governor Signs Trio of New Anti-Harassment Laws
October 24, 2018 by Andrew Baker
Governor Brown on September 30 signed three new bills addressing sexual harassment in the workplace. Significant features of the three bills, all of which are effective January 1, 2019, include the following.New Training: SB 1343… Read More
Business Operator Individually Liable for Wage & Hour Penalties After Business Goes Bankrupt
October 18, 2018 by Andrew Baker
A California Court of Appeal ruled last month that former employees of an Italian restaurant that went bankrupt after trial may recover from the restaurant’s operator civil penalties and attorneys’ fees for wage and hour… Read More
NLRB Orders Employer to Rescind Enrollment in E-Verify
September 20, 2018 by Andrew Baker
Employers are permitted, but not obligated, to enroll in the federal government’s E-Verify program to confirm that employees are authorized to work in the U.S. Because enrollment in the E-Verify program is discretionary, not mandatory,… Read More
Labor Day 2018 – Business As Usual Will Not Work
August 31, 2018 by Andrew Baker
The 2016 Trump election, expanding income inequality, and deep dissatisfaction with the economy, notwithstanding historic low unemployment rates, signal troubled times, and times for big thinking and big action for change. This goes for labor… Read More
Cal Supreme Court Deals Blow to the “Independent Contractor” Scam
May 3, 2018 by Andrew Baker
On April 30, the California Supreme Court issued a crushing blow to the “gig economy.” In Dynamex Operations West v. Lee, the Court imposed a standard that will make it much harder for Uber and… Read More
Labor Day 2017: A Look to the Future (Part Three)
September 4, 2017 by Andrew Baker
In the first two pieces in this series, we took a look at labor’s past, going all the way back to 1877. We’ve seen that starting with the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act in 1947,… Read More
Labor Day 2017: A Look to the Past (Part Two)
by Andrew Baker
In the first installment of this piece, we looked at the Great Strike of 1877 and the U.S. Supreme Court’s approval of the National Labor Relations Act in 1937. Passage of the NLRA in 1935… Read More
Labor Day 2017: A Look to the Past (Part One)
September 1, 2017 by Andrew Baker
Labor Day traditionally is the time to reflect on the state of the American labor movement, and Labor Day 2017 brings an opportunity to mark the anniversaries of several events in American history instrumental to… Read More
You Say “Confer,” I Say “Consult.” Let’s Not Call the Whole Thing Off
March 17, 2017 by Andrew Baker
The Meyers-Milias-Brown Act imposes on covered public employers an obligation both to “meet and confer” and to “consult” with recognized employee unions. Do the different words mean there are two different bargaining obligations? Not really… Read More
