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WhenCal/OSHAinspected Safeway's large warehouse in Tracy, CA, itfound"significant safety violations" meriting $182,000 in penalties.
When Cal/OSHA inspected Safeway's large warehouse in Tracy, CA, it found "significant safety violations" meriting $182,000 in penalties.
The eight serious violations and 19 others put 1,700 workers in danger from:
Cal/OSHA Chief Debra Lee stated: "It is critical that employers recognize the physical demands and potential dangers faced by warehouse workers and take measures to protect their safety. Our inspection revealed that Safeway's demanding warehouse quotas put its workers at risk of serious injury."
Take Aways:
Employers must make safety protocols and practices a priority, to protect their workers and to avoid penalties. They should have an Injury and Illness Prevention Program, including for indoor and outdoor heat illness prevention and should follow it.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
February 14, 2025
Castle Hills Master Association Inc. (Castle Hill), the Texas employer of a disabled pregnant worker, failed to accommodate her time-off request for doctor-prescribed bed rest because she was ineligible for Family and Medical Leave or short-term state disability benefits. Instead, the property management company terminated her.
Castle Hills Master Association Inc. (Castle Hill), the Texas employer of a disabled pregnant worker, failed to accommodate her time-off request for doctor-prescribed bed rest because she was ineligible for Family and Medical Leave or short-term state disability benefits. Instead, the property management company terminated her.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed court charges against Castle Hill for violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
The parties settled the case. Castle Hill is paying the pregnant worker $55,000 and will take measures to ensure employment opportunities for disabled individuals. It will also create protocols for handling reasonable accommodations for disabilities and train all employees on the protocols and ADA.
Dallas EEOC District Regional Attorney Robert A. Canino said, "It is important for employers to remember their duty to provide reasonable accommodation under the ADA, including the accommodation of leave, even when the employee does not qualify for FMLA or other employer-sponsored leave benefits."
Take Aways:
Employers should know and follow federal and state laws on reasonable accommodation of employee disabilities and engage in an interactive process to address accommodation needs. Presuming a person with disabilities has no rights if he or she has exhausted any state or federal leave time or cannot collect state benefits can be a very expensive error.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
February 6, 2025
California Labor Code section 515.5exempts certain computer software professionals from overtime compensation upon receipt of specified minimum compensation.
California Labor Code section 515.5 exempts certain computer software professionals from overtime compensation upon receipt of specified minimum compensation.
California's Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) has announced its rate increases for this minimum, effective January 1, 2025, to $56.97, up from $55.58. Alternatively, an otherwise qualified salaried employee is eligible on minimum annual compensation of $118,657.43, up from $115,763.35, payable at least once monthly at no less than $9,888.13.
An exempt computer professional must also meet each of the Labor Code section 515.5 high-level skills and duties criteria. Among these, the employee must be "primarily engaged" (more than 50% of the time) in intellectual or creative work requiring the exercise of discretion and independent judgment such as ● applying systems analysis to determine "functional specifications" of hardware, software or systems; ● designing computer systems or programs; and/or ● documenting, testing, creating or modifying computer programs related to computer systems software or hardware design.
Although these workers need not be paid overtime premium under California law, employers should further ensure they meet the comparable federal law exemption, which includes a less restrictive definition of "primary" duty, a lower hourly/salaried threshold, and similar skills and duties tests.
Such computer professionals may also qualify for the administrative, executive or "learned profession" exemptions from overtime. Each category possesses its own distinct qualifications.
For more information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Cindy Bamforth
January 28, 2025
"Knowledge is power" is cliché, but true.
"Knowledge is power" is cliché, but true.
California heads the nation in regulating employee relations. While workplace laws usually arise to police the few employers crossing the line into worker exploitation, they subject the vast bulk of well-intentioned businesses to thousands of technical rules requiring close attention.
Enacted in 2004, the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) has become the epitome of our state's intensive employment practices oversight. It is also the curse for a growing number of businesses that law has driven to the point of bankruptcy or exodus to more employer-friendly lands.
PAGA was originally intended to deter widespread Labor Code violations by deputizing employees to act as private attorneys to sue employers in place of the state. The suit need only name one aggrieved employee (former or current) to represent all others and collect penalties for each of the confirmed violations. Money recovered goes to the state and the affected employees, with a losing employer also paying successful opposing lawyers their fees and costs.
With penalties ranging from $10,000 [independent contractor misclassification] and $100/per violation, even minor non-compliance can be devastating. For example, if an employer underpaid 20 aggrieved employees overtime every week over 18 months, this would equal 1,560 "workweek" violations. This single violation thus carries possible $150,600 minimum penalty (1,560 x $100 minimum).
This business-crushing potential lead the legislature in 2024 to provide some greater options for employers to examine, detect and cure violations before and after being hit with a PAGA suit. See, Workplace Roulette, Reducing the Odds of PAGA Purgatory (December 13, 2024).
While future articles will cover those "cure" alternatives in greater detail, the greatest protection is initiative to review, spot and fully remedy violations before a dissatisfied employee and his lawyer contemplate a PAGA challenge.
Take-Away:
Best practice demands periodic "friendly" internal audits to know whether workplace practices are in- or out-of-compliance in California's highly regulated climate. In many cases, the cost to fix any problems found before PAGA comes knocking is a business-saving investment.
For more information on our help with such audits, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
● Annual Virtual Seminar, Friday, February 28, 2025, Covering Employment Legal Essentials and New Workplace Laws
● PAGA Monster Declawed; Major Relief for Responsible Employers (June 28, 2024)
● PAGA Monster Grows More Legs - Best Protection Against Potentially Devastating Group Labor Claims is ... Prevention (February 2, 2024)
● The PAGA Monster Is Hungry - Non-Compliant California Employers at High Risk under Special Law (May 14, 2021)
Tim Bowles
January 24, 2025
AB 2299requires employers to "prominently display in lettering larger than size 14 point type" a list of whistleblower rights and responsibilities and thestate's reporting hotline telephone number(s). It tasked the Labor Commissioner (LC) with publishing a sample list. SeeWhat's New In 2025 Whistleblower Posting: January 1, 2025 Implementation Deadline, Updated Notice Soon Available(October 4, 2024).
AB 2299 requires employers to "prominently display in lettering larger than size 14 point type" a list of whistleblower rights and responsibilities and the state's reporting hotline telephone number(s). It tasked the Labor Commissioner (LC) with publishing a sample list. See What's New In 2025 Whistleblower Posting: January 1, 2025 Implementation Deadline, Updated Notice Soon Available (October 4, 2024).
That LC model whistleblower notice is now available online. While employers are not required to use the state's template, there is no evident reason to re-invent the wheel.
Take Away:
Without delay, employers should post prominently in an employee-frequented area the LC model notice or an alternative.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
January 24, 2025
We provide this 1/9/25 Cal/OSHA public notice:
We provide this 1/9/25 Cal/OSHA public notice:
Advisory - Release Number: 2025-06
January 9, 2025
Wildfire Smoke Alert: Cal/OSHA urges employers to protect workers from unhealthy air in Los Angeles County.
Cal/OSHA is reminding employers to protect workers from unhealthy air due to wildfire smoke. Several fires are currently impacting air quality throughout Los Angeles County. Refer to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) for the latest status on the fire, road closures and evacuation orders.
Currently, wildfire smoke is impacting many areas of Los Angeles County but could eventually spread even further.
What you need to know: Cal/OSHA's Protection from Wildfire Smoke standard requires employers to protect workers from unhealthy air due to wildfire smoke.
To protect workers, employers must monitor air quality, adjust work practices, and provide N-95 respirators for voluntary use. Cal/OSHA's standard also outlines specific training requirements. Full details, including resources in both English and Spanish, can be found at www.WildfireSmokeCalifornia.org and www.HumodeIncendios.org.
Monitoring air quality: When wildfire smoke might affect a worksite, employers must monitor the Air Quality Index (AQI) for PM2.5 before and throughout the work shift.
Where the AQI for PM2.5 is above 150, the employer must provide respirators to all workers and encourage workers to use respirators.
Where the AQI for PM2.5 exceeds 500, respirator use is required.
Air quality can be tracked through websites like the U.S. EPA's AirNow or local air quality management district websites. Employers can also use their own instruments to measure PM2.5 at worksites per Cal/OSHA's requirements.
Evacuation Zones: In California, it is illegal for employers to retaliate against workers for refusing to work in unsafe conditions, including in evacuation zones. Read more in the fact sheet Worker Safety Wildfire Smoke and Evacuation Zones.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
More resources for wildfire smoke safety:
Cal/OSHA within the Department of Industrial Relations helps protect workers from health and safety hazards on the job in almost every workplace in California. Cal/OSHA's Consultation Services provides free and voluntary assistance to employers to improve their health and safety programs.
Workers who have questions about wildfire smoke hazards and protections can call 833-579-0927 to speak with a Cal/OSHA representative. Complaints about workplace safety and health hazards can be filed confidentially with Cal/OSHA district offices.
Employers with Questions on Requirements May Contact: InfoCons@dir.ca.gov, or call your local Cal/OSHA Consultation Office
January 10, 2025
California Division of Occupational Safety and Health(Cal/OSHA) haspenalizedVan Nuys' Parkwood Landscape Maintenance $276,425 for deliberately and knowingly violating state heat illness prevention regulations.
California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) has penalized Van Nuys' Parkwood Landscape Maintenance $276,425 for deliberately and knowingly violating state heat illness prevention regulations.
Cal/OSHA found the company:
Marking its first willful heat violation citation, Cal/OSHA Chief Debra Lee stated: "Employers have a responsibility to protect their workers from the dangers of extreme heat. It is unacceptable for any business to blatantly ignore safety protocols, putting their employees at serious risk."
Take-Aways:
Covered employers must correctly implement and comply with all applicable outdoor and indoor heat illness prevention procedures.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Cindy Bamforth
January 10, 2025
California Division of Occupational Safety and Health(Cal/OSHA) haspenalizedSan Pedro's Harbor Animal Services Center $563,250 for permitting overcrowding that led to worker injuries, including a May 2024 mauling and hospitalization of a supervisor.According to the LA Times, the victim was getting a dog out of its kennel to show to a rescue group when it "flipped out" and attacked her leg.
California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) has penalized San Pedro's Harbor Animal Services Center $563,250 for permitting overcrowding that led to worker injuries, including a May 2024 mauling and hospitalization of a supervisor. According to the LA Times, the victim was getting a dog out of its kennel to show to a rescue group when it "flipped out" and attacked her leg.
Cal/OSHA found serious training and safety issues, including:
Debra Lee, Cal/OSHA Chief, stated: "This incident underscores the severe consequences that arise when employers fail to take proper measures to protect their staff from preventable risks. While we cannot undo the harm caused, we can hold employers accountable. Every employee deserves a workplace that prioritizes their health and safety."
Take-Away:
Attention to and investment in workplace safety and accident prevention are not backburner matters.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
January 3, 2025
AB 3234, enacted to enhance transparency, requires an employer to post a website link to the child labor findings of any voluntary self-audit on workplace practices, including:
AB 3234, enacted to enhance transparency, requires an employer to post a website link to the child labor findings of any voluntary self-audit on workplace practices, including:
(1) When the audit was conducted (year, month, day, time, and whether conducted on a day or night shift);
(2) The result - i.e., did the employer engage in or support use of child labor (persons under 18);
(3) A copy of any written policies and procedures regarding child employees;
(4) Any exposures to hazardous or unsafe situations for minors;
(5) Work during or outside school hours or night hours; and
(6) A statement that the auditing company is not a government agency and is not authorized to verify compliance with state and federal labor laws or other health and safety regulations.
This new law begs the question of whether a public posting requirement actually discourages employers from engaging in such audits by opening them to government scrutiny, rather than confidentially looking for errors and fixing them.
TAKE-AWAYS: Employers should follow all child labor laws when hiring minors. When determining compliance after-the-fact, they should obtain attorney advice to decide if conducting voluntary self-audits of child labor will be more helpful than harmful and the safest way to do so. If an attorney conducts the audit, it may shield the results from public posting as confidential attorney work product and attorney-client privileged communication.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
December 27, 2024