Governor Brown recently signed into law AB 2674, imposing new requirements on how and when employers respond to employees’ requests for inspection and copying of their personnel files.
Department of Transportation to Track Contracting Activity with Businesses Owned by the LBGT Community
By Ramona Carrillo on
Posted in Labor Law, New Legislation and Regulations
Existing law required that the Department of General Services track and report on the State’s contracting activity with businesses, including such owner characteristics as ethnicity, race and gender. AB 1960 simply extends the characteristics tracked in the database to include businesses owned by lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender individuals. While California law prohibits contracting preferences or quotas for such minority owned business enterprises, data is collected for statistical and reporting purposes.
First “Commission” Agreements Must Be in Writing. Now the Definition of “Commissions” is Limited Under Labor Code § 2751
By Labor & Employment on
Last year, California revised Labor Code section 2751 such that any employment agreement involving “commission” payments would have to be put into writing with a signed copy of the agreement be given to the employee. Those revisions go into effect on January 1, 2013.
Definition of “Public Works” Broadened to Include the Assembly and Disassembly of Freestanding and Affixed Modular Office Systems
By Ramona Carrillo on
Governor Brown signed AB 1598 on September 30, 2012, amending Labor Code section 1720 relating to public contracts. The existing law defines the term “public works” for purposes of imposing certain requirements in the payment of prevailing wages. Existing law generally defines “public works” to include construction, alteration, demolition, installation, or repair work done under contract and paid for in whole or in part out of public funds. This bill modifies existing law merely to include in the definition of “installation,” the assembly and disassembly of freestanding and affixed modular office systems.
Farm Labor Contractors Encouraged to Become Licensed by the Labor Commissioner, or Face Increasing Monetary Penalties
By Ramona Carrillo on
AB 1675 was signed by Governor Brown to increase the penalties farm labor contractors face where failing to become properly licensed by the Labor Commissioner. Previous law required farm labor contractors to be licensed by the Labor Commissioner. Under that law, violators were guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by specified fines, or imprisonment in the county jail for not more than 6 months, or both. AB 1675 increased the penalties associated with failing to become licensed as a farm labor contractor, allowing the Labor Commissioner to not only issue citations to violators of the law, but assess civil penalties that increase with the number of citations issued. Any civil penalties collected will be deposited into the Farmworker Remedial account be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for purposes of regulating farm labor contractors. (AB 1675; amended Labor Code § 1683.)