As the state of California approaches one year of being under various shelter-in-place orders, the Labor & Workforce Development Agency and the Department of Industrial Relations have consolidated resources for employers into a new website. The site provides information on how to ensure a safer and healthier workplace. It also has information on handling
Maryland Joins New York with a BIPA-like Biometric Privacy Bill
On January 13, House Delegate Sara Love Introduced the “Biometric Identifiers and Biometric Information Privacy Act” (the “Act”) substantially modeled after the Biometric Information Privacy Act in Illinois, 740 ILCS 14 et seq. (the “BIPA”). Enacted in 2008, the Illinois BIPA only recently triggered an avalanche of class actions in Illinois, spurring other
California’s Healthy Workplace Healthy Family Act Covers COVID-19, Too
California currently has a patchwork of local COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave ordinances which remain in effect in 2021. But what about employers that are not located in those localities with a supplemental paid sick leave ordinance? Or employees who have exhausted supplement paid sick leave allotments?
Before the pandemic, California had the Healthy Workplace
California COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave in 2021
In 2020, employers with employees in California were inundated with new compliance requirements brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. It seemed that another local government or the state passed a COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave requirement nearly every month. These supplemental sick leave benefits applied to employees who were not covered by the federal Families
The City of Oakland Extends its Emergency Paid Sick Leave Ordinance
Joining other counties and cities in California, the City of Oakland voted to extend its Emergency Paid Sick Leave ordinance into 2021. The amended ordinance applies retroactively to December 31, 2020, and will remain in effect until the City’s Declaration of COVID-19 Emergency expires.
The amended ordinance applies to all employers that have employees working
“Hero Pay” Ordinance Passed in City of Long Beach and Likely Coming to a City Near You
COVID-19 cases continue to surge around Southern California, causing the region to remain under the restrictions imposed by the statewide Regional Stay at Home Order longer than previously predicted. In response, local governments are looking for ways to reward the grocery workers who have been deemed essential since the start of the pandemic.
The City
Additional Guidance for Cal OSHA’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards
In November, California quietly approved the Division of Occupational Safety and Health’s (“Cal OSHA”) COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”). Almost immediately, Cal OSHA’s ETS caused significant confusion and challenges for employers, who were already struggling with countless federal, state, and local requirements pertaining to COVID-19. Cal OSHA’s ETS also appeared to create new and
Virginia Passes Permanent Standard on COVID-19
The Virginia Safety and Health Codes Board enacted a Permanent Standard on COVID-19 in workplaces in a 9-4 vote on January 13, 2021.
On July 15, 2020, Virginia became the first state in the nation to promulgate an Emergency Temporary Standard to address COVID-19 in workplaces. Even with vaccine deliveries on the way, Virginia has
The City of San Jose Extends and Expands Its Supplemental Paid Sick Leave Ordinance
The City of San Jose recently passed an ordinance extending its supplemental paid sick leave ordinance until June 30, 2021 and expanding it to apply to all employers with employees working in San Jose.
Extension
When it was first passed, San Jose’s supplemental paid sick leave ordinance was set to expire on December 31, 2020.
Agricultural Employers Challenge Cal OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard on COVID-19 Prevention
At the end of 2020, California approved the Division of Occupational Safety & Health’s (“Cal OSHA”) COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”).
Among the many requirements in the new ETS, Cal OSHA imposed a performance-based obligation on employers to establish and implement an effective COVID-19 Prevention Program, COVID-19 preventive measures (e.g., social distancing and mandatory