New Legislation and Regulations

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State Minimum Wage Increase

On January 1, 2026, California’s state minimum wage will increase by 40 cents per hour, to $16.90 per hour. This adjustment is a 2.49% increase based on federal inflation data (the U.S. Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers).  Employers with workers at or near the current minimum wage should plan accordingly, to ensure wages stay above the minimum.  In addition, exempt workers’ salaries must also be adjusted to at least double the state minimum wage.  The minimum salary for workers classified as exempt will rise to $70,304 per year ($5,858.67 per month) on January 1. Continue Reading California Minimum Wage Set to Increase in 2026

On July 1, 2025, the California Civil Rights Department (“CRD”) issued its new Notice entitled “Survivors Of Violence And Family Members Of Victims Right To Leave And Accommodations.” The new Notice was issued pursuant to Assembly Bill 2499 which was signed into law in late 2024.  Among other things, the legislation expanded leave and accommodation protections for employees who are either the victim of, or have a family member who is the victim of, certain qualifying acts of violence, as defined by the statute.Continue Reading The CA Civil Rights Dept. Issues New Notice on Qualifying Acts of Violence Leave & Accommodation

On April 7, 2025, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Member Gwynne Wilcox was again reinstated after initially being fired by President Trump in a short email on January 27, 2025, stating that he had lost confidence in Wilcox’s ability to lead the Board.  Trump’s firing of Wilcox left the Board without a three-member quorum.  The April 7th decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia is just the latest development in this saga, which is primed for Supreme Court review.Continue Reading Whiplash at the NLRB

Last year, we reported on the reforms to the Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) that Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law on July 1, 2024.  The reform legislation was pushed through to avoid a ballot vote on a measure seeking to repeal PAGA entirely in the 2024 election.  The legislation was aimed at providing some relief to employers from the flood of meritless PAGA claims and provide mechanisms for early resolution.  The legislation also gave the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) the resources and ability to expedite hiring and to fill vacancies in the CA Labor and Workforce Development Agency (LWDA) which is the division responsible for PAGA administration and oversight. While the reforms did not appear deter the “serial filer” firms from filing a record number of cases (9,463 PAGA notices were filed in calendar year 2024 – a jump from 8,100 the prior year), we are extremely pleased to report that the LWDA and its new hires, have begun taking a much more active role in these cases at an early stage and cracking down on the worst abusers of the PAGA statutes.Continue Reading An Update on PAGA Reform from the Trenches – Finally, Some Relief for Employers from Meritless Claims

If you followed California’s 2024 Legislative term, you know that Senate Bill 399 (“SB 399”) was passed and signed into law by Governor Newsom on September 27, 2024.  For the most part, SB 399 has been described as a new “captive audience” law that prevents most, but not all, employers from taking any adverse action against an employee who declines to attend an employer-sponsored meeting in which the employer or its agents discuss “political matters” or “religious matters.” The law came about during a time of great political division in the US, and was aimed at protecting an employee’s right to hold their own political and religious views, and be free of intimidation by their employer.Continue Reading You Can’t Make Me Go to that Meeting! CA Law Prohibits Adverse Action Against Employees Who Refuse to Go to Certain Meetings