The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) recently issued two final rules confirming that employers can offer limited incentives (in the form of a reward or avoidance of a penalty) to encourage employees and their spouses to participate in workplace wellness programs.  Under these new rules, employers who offer wellness programs will be allowed to provide such limited incentives to employees or their spouses to induce them to provide information about their current or past health status.  The new rules modify regulations that pertain to Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (“GINA”) while creating new regulations that pertain to the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”).

To read the rest of the blog, click here: http://blog.hrusa.com/blog/eeocs-final-rules-employer-wellness-programs/

Summary of Program
The Labor and Employment Group at Weintraub Tobin is pleased to offer this informative seminar that will discuss recent cases to help business owners, human resource professionals, and managers avoid liability and effectively hire employees as well as carry out disciplines and terminations. This seminar will cover:

• Lawful and effective job postings and interview questions.L&E2015
• Tips for an effective and meaningful discipline process.
• Effective policies, training and documentation to reduce liability.
• “Progressive Discipline” – Beware!
• Conduct that may constitute “retaliation” and the laws that apply.
• Properly responding to “whistleblowers”.
• Voluntary quits versus “constructive” termination.
• What constitutes “wrongful termination” and what that means for at-will employment.

Date:  September 15, 2016
Time:  9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Seminar
9:00 am – 9:30 am – Registration & Breakfast
9:30 am – 11:30am – Seminar

Webinar: This seminar is also available via webinar. Please indicate in your RSVP if you will be attending via webinar.

Location
Weintraub Tobin Office
400 Capitol Mall, 11th Floor | Sacramento, CA 95814

Parking Validation provided. Please park in the Wells Fargo parking garage, entrances on 4th and 5th Street. Please bring your parking ticket with you to the 11th floor.

Approved for two (2) hours MCLE. This program will be submitted to the HR Certification Institute for review. Certificates will be provided upon verification of attendance for the entirety of the webcast.

There is cost for this seminar.

*This seminar will be limited to 75 in-person attendees.

In July 2016, the federal Department of Labor (DOL) updated two posters that employers are required to post in the workplace.

  1. The “Employee Rights under the Fair Labor Standards Act” poster; andBeth-West-15_web
  1. The “Employee Rights – Employee Polygraph Protection Act” poster.

According to the DOL, every employer subject to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Employee Polygraph Protection Act (EPPA) must post and keep posted on its premises the amended posters after August 1, 2016.  The posters must be posted in a prominent and conspicuous place in every establishment of the employer where it can readily be observed by employees and applicants for employment.

Copies of the posters can be obtained on the DOL website at: https://www.dol.gov/whd/resources/posters.htm.

Employers whose workers earn most of their compensation through tips, such as restaurant employees, know that they walk a fine line to ensure compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and numerous other laws.  Last month the Fifth Circuit rejected a program instituted by a restaurant operator in Texas that deducted certain fees before paying tips to its restaurant workers that were earned by customers using credit cards. While the ruling does not close the door on such arrangements, employers who utilize such programs will be under scrutiny to ensure strict compliance with the FLSA.

Read more on it here: http://blog.hrusa.com/blog/restaurants-fee-deduction-program-violates-flsa/

WINDOW CLOSES TODAY!

Employers who wish to take advantage of the safe harbor provision of California’s new piece rate legislation, must provide notice to the Director of Industrial Relations by July 28, 2016.  The deadline for employers to provide notice was temporarily suspended while a Fresno Superior Court considered a petition by Nisei Farmers League requesting a preliminary injunction to prevent the implementation of the safe harbor provisions of Labor Code section 226.2 created by AB 1513.  The temporary restraining order was issued in the case of Nisei Farmers League v. California Labor and Workforce Development Agency, et al., (Case No. 16 CECG 02107).  The original deadline for employers to provide notice to the Director of Industrial Relations was July 1, 2016.

On July 18, 2016, the court heard arguments from the parties on whether a preliminary injunction should be ordered pending formal trial on the question of whether a permanent injunction will be issued.  On July 25, 2016, the court denied the Nisei Farmers League’s motion for preliminary injunction.  Per the court’s Order to show cause, the deadline for employers to provide notice of their election to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of Labor Code section 226.2(b)(3) is July 28, 2016.

The Director of Industrial Relations will accept notice through 11:59 p.m. on July 28, 2016, but will not accept noticed received after that date.  Employers should provide notice by the end of today by mailing notice to the Director of Industrial Relations, Attn: Piece-Rate Section, 226.2 Election Notice, 1515 Clay Street, 17th Floor, Oakland, CA 94612 or by filling out the online form available on the Department of Industrial Relations website.