Orange County Employment Law Blog
Evidence of Age Discrimination Sufficient to Overcome Summary Judgment
In Cheal v. El Camino Hospital, ___ Cal.App.4th ___ (Jan. 31, 2014), the California Court of Appeal (Sixth Appellate District) reversed the ruling of the Santa Clara County Superior Court (Judge Pierce) granting summary judgment on Plaintiff’s age discrimination...
Plaintiff Must Plead Sufficient Facts to Support Claim Under Labor Code Section 2810
In Hawkins v. Taca International Airlines, S.A., ___ Cal.App.4th ___ (Jan. 27, 2014), the California Court of Appeal (Second Appellate District, Division Four) affirmed the ruling of the Los Angeles County Superior Court (Judge Stern) sustaining the demurrers of...
Time Spent Donning and Doffing Protective Clothing Might Not be Compensable in Union Setting
In Sandifer v. United States Steel Corp., ___ U.S. ___ (Jan. 27, 2014), the United States Supreme Court affirmed the ruling of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirming the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana...
Claims for Unpaid Overtime by Union Employees May be Barred
In Vranish v. Exxon Mobil Corp., ___ Cal.App.4th ___ (Jan. 22, 2014), the California Court of Appeal (Second Appellate District, Division Two) affirmed the ruling of the Los Angeles County Superior Court (Judge Mooney) granting summary judgment to the defendant...
Retaliation Must be a Substantial Motivating Reason for Discharge in Wrongful Termination Case
In Mendoza v. Western Medical Center Santa Ana, ___ Cal.App.4th ___ (Jan. 14, 2014), the California Court of Appeal (Fourth Appellate District, Division Three) reversed the ruling of the Orange County Superior Court (Judge Bauer) instructing the jury in a wrongful...
Same-Sex Harassment Plaintiff Need Not Show that Hostile Environment Was Because of Sex
In Taylor v. Nabors Drilling, ___ Cal.App.4th ___ (Jan. 13, 2014), the California Court of Appeal (Second Appellate District, Division Six) affirmed the ruling of the Ventura County Superior Court (Judge Bysshe) denying defendant’s motion for judgment notwithstanding...
Plaintiff Cannot Overcome Privilege on Defamation Claim Without Showing Malice
In Hui v. Sturbaum, ___ Cal.App.4th ___ (Jan. 9, 2014), the California Court of Appeal (First Appellate District, Division Five) affirmed the ruling of the San Francisco County Superior Court (Judge Kahn) granting of an anti-SLAPP motion to a defamation claim....
California’s Minimum Wage Hike Will Have Big Impact
As of July 1, 2014, California’s Minimum Wage Rate will increase to $9.00 per hour. A year and a half after that, on January 1, 2016, it will rise again to $10 per hour. Although California still won't have the highest state minimum wage in the U.S. (Washington’s...
New Overtime Law For Domestic Workers in California
As of January 1, 2014, California’s new Domestic Workers Bill of Rights Act, found at Labor Code Section 1450, et seq., provides that individuals employed as domestic workers in California (including nannies, housekeepers and maids) are eligible for overtime pay. The...
“Recovery” Period Added to List of Required Breaks for Employees
California Labor Code Section 226.7, which requires employers to provide meal and rest breaks to their employees without interruption (i.e. requiring the employees to work during these periods), has been expanded as of January 1, 2014, to include within its scope any...