Law & Advocacy

The Supreme Court’s unanimous decision in Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court is fascinating in many ways. It was one of the most highly anticipated employment law cases in the last decade and provides significant clarifications regarding both California’s meal and rest period rules, and the standards relating to class certification. More ›

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services have issued formal requests for comment on certain employer requirements under the Affordable Care Act. In this round of requests, the government is asking for input on several issues, including the process for verifying an individual’s eligibility for tax credits to purchase insurance coverage through state-based health insurance exchanges, and employers’ obligation to provide an annual report to the IRS on the employees covered under their health plans and the details of such coverage. Comments are due June 11. More ›

The California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement has issued revised answers to frequently asked questions about, and a revised model wage notice form for complying with, a law that requires employers to provide certain wage and other information to employees at the time of hire. The new law took effect Jan. 1. It’s the second time the state DLSE has revised the FAQs and notice form. More ›

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in California, has ruled that a former employee of a search and placement firm, who persuaded the firm’s current employees to access its computer data for the purpose of helping him set up a competing business, could not be criminally prosecuted under the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. More ›

The city of Washington, DC, and the state of Oregon recently enacted laws that prohibit employers and employment agencies from discriminating against job applicants based on their status as unemployed. New Jersey had previously enacted such a law, and similar legislation is pending in Arizona, Illinois, Nebraska, New York, and Michigan. More ›

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is seeking public comments on proposed revisions to its Form I-9. Because of ambiguity with respect to several proposed language changes, ASA will submit comments to confirm that staffing firms can continue to complete the Form I-9 at the time a candidate consents to be included in the staffing firm’s roster of temporary employees, irrespective of the time the individual actually begins work. Public comments are due May 29. More ›

A revised version of House Bill 1393 was passed out of the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Labor and Work Force Development. As originally drafted, HB 1393 would have prohibited staffing firms from charging permanent placement and conversion fees with respect to certain employees, potentially required in-state offices, and potentially prohibited staffing firms from sending candidate résumés to clients for purposes of generating client interest and job orders. More ›

In an unpublished opinion issued Mar. 15, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied class certification in a case brought on behalf of Aerotek recruiters who claimed that they were misclassified as exempt administrative employees and thus entitled to overtime pay under California wage and hour law, Delodder, et al, v. Aerotek, Case 10-56755. The court upheld the district court’s ruling that the recruiters were not similarly situated and thus could not comprise a proper class for the class action. More ›

On Mar. 12, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, issued guidance stating that staffing firms can sponsor H1-B workers if they can establish a valid employer relationship with the assigned worker, or “beneficiary.” The H-1B program is used by U.S. businesses to employ college-educated foreign workers with highly specialized knowledge, such as engineers and computer programmers. More ›

Employers’ ability to perform criminal background checks during the hiring process is essential to ensure safety in the workplace. Recent activity at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suggests that the manner in which employers access and use criminal background checks may be limited through forthcoming agency guidance. More ›