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Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill 1159 (“SB 1159”) on September 17, 2020, which could expand the definition of injury under the workers’ compensation system to include illness or death resulting from COVID-19. In May, the governor had issued an executive order which created a presumption that any COVID-19-related illness of an employee shall be presumed…

On September 17, 2020, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill (“AB”) 685, which requires employers to provide written notifications to employees within one business day of receiving notice of potential exposure to coronavirus (“COVID-19”).  AB 685 also authorizes the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (“Cal OSHA”) to prohibit operations, processes, and prevent entry into…

On September 9, 2020, the Governor signed Assembly Bill 1867 (“AB 1867”) which mandated both food sector employers and other industries, including employers with 500 or more employees, to provide supplemental paid sick leave (“COVID-19 Supplemental PSL”). The California Labor Commissioner, charged with enforcement of the new laws, has issued a Frequently Asked Questions Page…

On September 9, 2020, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1867 (“AB 1867”) which has three new laws combined into one bill. The bill covers supplemental sick leave requirements, a pilot mediation program for small employers, and mandated hand washing requirements for food workers.

Food Sector Workers Supplemental Sick Leave

When Governor Newsom issued Executive Order…

As California employers brace for a host of new laws that will affect operations in the workplace, the City of San Diego recently passed two new COVID-19 ordinances. The City Council passed a right of recall ordinance and a supplemental paid sick leave ordinance before Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1837, which covers similar supplemental…

On August 27, 2020, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer issued Executive Order 2020-172. The Executive Order affirms that employers are prohibited from discharging, disciplining, or retaliating against employees who stay home when they or their close contacts are sick. 

However, the Executive Order redefines the “principal symptoms of COVID-19” as follows:

The principal symptoms of…

As safe in-person voting became an issue in other states, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order requiring each county’s election officials to send vote-by-mail ballots to registered voters for the November election. The Governor also issued an executive order requiring counties to provide early polling locations for at least three days prior to…

On August 28th, Governor Newsom announced new reopening plans for California in hopes of preventing another COVID-19 surge. The plan incorporates information learned over the past six months in addition to new scientific discoveries to create a system for reducing the transmission of COVID-19. It involves a four-tiered color system that ranks counties based on…

With the increase in COVID-19 cases in California and across the nation, employers are faced with a number of new challenges in the workplace, one of which is determining when employees may return to work after they have tested positive for the virus. Unfortunately, there have been mixed messages from state and federal authorities on…

In 2018, California law extended anti-harassment training requirements to employers with 5 employees or more and mandated that non-supervisors also receive such training, in addition to supervisors. The original deadline for completion of that training was January 1, 2020.  Current California law requires employers with 5 or more employees to provide one (1) hour of…