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Meagan D. Bainbridge

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Meagan Bainbridge assists employers in all aspects of their employment relationship with their employees. She is an experienced trial attorney and has successfully litigated a wide variety of issues in both state and federal courts as well as before various administrative agencies for clients in a wide range of industries. In addition, Meagan provides advice, counsel, and training to employers concerning their workplace policies, practices, and personnel decisions and is a frequent presenter on employment law topics.

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At the request of the 9th Circuit, the California Supreme Court recently clarified the definition of “hours worked” under the Labor Code. In Huerta v. CSI Electrical Contractors, the employees worked at a solar power facility, which was located on privately-owned land. To reach the actual worksite, employees had to enter onto private land, present a badge at a security gate (at which point a security guard might “peer” into their car or truck), and then drive an additional 10–15 minutes to access the employee parking lot. It was estimated that the security check could take between 5-30 minutes. This would happen again at the end of the day. Also, because there were endangered species present on the privately-owned land, there were restrictions employees were expected to follow while driving on the road, including not exceeding a certain speed limit, and refraining from honking horns or playing loud music. The Court was asked to answer two questions with respect to the definition of “hours worked” as discussed below.Continue Reading The California Supreme Court Further Clarifies the Definition of “Hours Worked”

Having a fair and meaningful disciplinary process can be a helpful tool for employers to improve employee performance. In this episode of California Employment News, employment attorneys Meagan Bainbridge and Nikki Mahmoudi share their best practices for implementing effective disciplinary procedures in the workplace.Continue Reading California Employment News: Effective Disciplinary Procedures and Policies

Long-time blog readers and CEN watchers will recall that for the last several years, we have been watching several cases discussing whether Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) claims may be stricken as unmanageable. First, in the Fall of 2021, an appellate court determined that trial courts have inherent authority to strike or limit PAGA claims that could not otherwise be made manageable in order to “preserve judicial resources [and to] prevent trials from becoming excessively complex and time-consuming.” (See Wesson v. Staples the Office Superstore, LLC (2021) 68 Cal.App.5th 746). Just a few months later, a different appellate court disagreed, concluding that while a court may limit the presentation of evidence to ensure a manageable trial, courts had no authority to strike or limit PAGA claims due to unmanageability. (See Estrada v. Royalty Carpet Mills, Inc. (2022) 76 Cal. App. 5th 685.)Continue Reading California Supreme Court Determines PAGA Cases May Not be Dismissed Due to Issues of Manageability

With a new year beginning, there are some important tips for employers to keep in mind to help keep their employment practices up-to-date. Employment attorneys Lukas Clary and Meagan Bainbridge review some of the best practices for employers to begin the new year, including employee handbooks, job descriptions, and payroll practices, in this special…

The use of AI in the workplace can help streamline many tasks, but it can also come with potential discrimination concerns for employers. Meagan Bainbridge and Lukas Clary review some of these concerns and share best practices for employers in this episode of California Employment News.Continue Reading California Employment News: The Use of A.I. in the Workplace – Discrimination Concerns (Part 2)