Freelance Isn’t Free: LA City Council Votes to Consider Freelancer Protection Law
California has seen a number of workers’ rights battles in recent months. From the ruling declaring Prop 22 unconstitutional to the lawsuits against Activision Blizzard, the state has been cracking down on businesses and laws that harm working people. The city of Los Angeles is taking this even further. The LA City Council has recently […]
Prop 22 Ruled Unconstitutional: The Impact On Workers’ Rights
If you’re a California gig worker, the law Proposition 22 seriously impacted your job and finances. This law, funded by big businesses like Uber and Lyft, lets these companies ignore other laws requiring them to treat drivers like other employees. You may not have heard that Prop 22 has been declared unconstitutional, but this is […]
Can Your Employer Force You to Get Vaccinated?
The COVID-19 vaccine is controversial for some people. Many people want to opt out of receiving the vaccine for personal reasons. Meanwhile, the CDC has made it clear that as many people as possible must be vaccinated to end the spread of the virus. President Biden is clearly on the side of vaccinations with his […]
Mask Mandates: California’s New COVID-19 Workplace Safety Rules
As of June 15th, California officially has new COVID-19 workplace safety standards. These new rules are designed to protect workers and customers from the risks of the virus while also respecting personal choice. The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal-OSHA) has put the new rules in place. The statewide mask mandate ended on […]
3 signs of workplace age discrimination
If your coworkers or employer regularly mistreat you while you are at work, you could be the victim of age discrimination. These signs may be subtle, and they may only increase as you get older. According to the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, your employer and coworkers are legally prohibited from discriminating against you because […]
Employment contracts and worker rights
Even though California workers have specific rights protected by state law, not all employers succeed at enforcing policies to protect those rights. Ongoing conflict may ensue when employees lack adequate support from their employers. Employment contracts play a key role in defining expectations within an employer/employee relationship. They can provide a reference when concerns or […]
What workplace protections can you expect after your pregnancy?
Past posts on this blog describe the workplace rights you have as a pregnant mother in California. Yet what about after the delivery of your baby? Maternity leave falls among those workplace protections, giving you the time needed to recover from your delivery and to bond with your new baby. It also helps your body […]
What is the difference between an independent contractor and an employee?
Workers can be employees or they can be categorized as independent contractors. The distinction is very important, as the California Labor Code treats them differently. Assembly Bill 5, which became law in 2019, provides employers a methodology for determining whether a new hire is an actual employee or employed as an independent contractor. While most […]
What rights do you have as a pregnant woman in the workplace?
Pregnancy discrimination laws exist to give pregnant women, or women experiencing pregnancy-related health issues, certain rights and protections while at work. As long as you work for an employer that maintains a staff of at least 15 people, that employer must abide by the terms set by two specific rulings. Per the U.S. Equal Employment […]
Pros and cons of NDAs for employees
Over the last couple of decades, more and more employees in the U.S. have been asked to sign nondisclosure agreements as part of their standard new-hire onboarding process when joining a new company. The practice has become so commonplace that few question these documents before signing them as they appear to be just normal things […]