Big-firm sophistication. Boutique focus.

Employers should seek counseling and guidance on everyday workplace issues early and often. By retaining employment counsel early, you can communicate openly about potential litigation risks — those attorney-client communications are protected.

We believe that a strong infrastructure is crucial to compliance and effectively managing employee relations. In fact, failing to update and enforce workplace policies, practices, and processes expose California employers to individual and class-action lawsuits. Our experienced employment attorneys can help adapt your Company policies and practices to safeguard your Company’s crown jewels and stay legally compliant.

This is a key area of the law. Much to our continued surprise most employers do not understand the basics. As a result we advise businesses on wage and hour issues almost on a daily basis. What are the issues? Overtime, calculation of the proper “regular rate” for overtime, rest/meal periods, exempt versus non-exempt status, outside sales exception, minimum wage issues, maintaining accurate time records, rounding practices, working off the clock, timing of payment of wages, commissions/bonuses, unlawful deductions, waiting time penalties under Labor Code section 203, required reimbursement under Labor Code section 2802, and Labor Commissioner conferences and hearings, just to name a few. We would be willing to bet if we walked into any small/medium business we would find non-compliance issues. This is how wide-spread these problems are.

There are only two types of workers in the eyes of the law: independent contractors or employees. They are mutually exclusive. The worker is either an independent contractor or they are your employee, but cannot be both at the same time. This is a threshold and fundamental decision which carries significant legal consequences. If you have an “employee” then all employment and labor laws under the sun – California and federal – apply. If you have a true independent contractor, they don’t apply (with some notable exceptions). So it’s a big deal to get this right

California employment laws require an employer to conduct a "prompt and thorough" investigation of any alleged conduct which may constitute unlawful harassment, discrimination and/or retaliation. But failing to conduct an investigation any time an employee claims, directly or indirecty, that he/she feels mistreated in any manner in the workplace (even if not required by law) leaves the employer exposed in subsequent legal action.

An employee handbook is not required by law. But many employers use one as a tool to inform their employees of their rules and to reduce the risk in the event of an employee lawsuit. Properly drafted, an employee handbook covers many key employment and labor issues to favor the employer while preserving employer discretion. We do not recommend that every single employer have a handbook. But if you are interested in knowing the pros and cons of having an employee handbook or are ready to implement one, you have found the right lawyers to help you.

Wrongful termination is the label we’ll use for the various ways an employee can sue you when you terminate their employment. The underlying legal hook could be based on discrimination, retaliation, whistle blowing, a statute, public policy, leave law, a contract (including an implied contract) or others. We can help you deal with your problem child employee – and terminate their employment if necessary – without it turning into a wrongful termination lawsuit. There is a right way, and a wrong way. We advise you on how to do it the right way. Or if you have

Our experienced employment Group works quickly to fully evaluate known facts, policies, and applicable laws, recommending, implementing and reassessing strategic responses to best protect your company from start to finish

We offer on-site interactive employment related training courses, best described by one of our clients as the “gift that keeps on giving back” to California employers.

• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

• Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)

• Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

• Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)

• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act

• Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)

• Equal Pay Act (EPA)

• Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA)

• National Labor Relations Act (NLRA)

• Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)

• Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act)

• Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA)

• Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)

• Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) (Employment-Related Background Checks)

• Whistleblower Protection Act

• Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA)

• Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) (Employment-Related Provisions)

• Affordable Care Act (ACA) (Employment-Related Provisions)

• Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA)

• Rehabilitation Act (Applicable to Federal Contractors but May Impact Private Employers)

It is unlawful to make employment decisions based on race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex (including pregnancy and breast feeding), gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, and sexual orientation. But successful businesses discriminate daily – by selecting the best employee with the right attitude, skills, background, knowledge and experience for the job. We help you cull the best from those less deserving without running afoul of anti-discrimination laws.

Reasonable accommodation law can be a trap for the unwary. This is an offshoot of discrimination law. Discrimination law says employers must provide reasonable accommodations for employees with physical or mental disabilities. The law requires an employer to engage in what’s called the “interactive process” to determine “reasonable accommodations” to the disabled employee and then provide them. Managing this process so it works for you and your employee without violating the law is extremely challenging. And that’s assuming you know the law and have significant real world experience in applying it. We have that knowledge and real world experience. We are here to help you in this difficult legal area.

Unfortunately, employees have generally come to understand “unlawful harassment” to be any kind of harassment (i.e. managing their performance and holding them accountable). But this is not the case – not that we recommend general harassment as good management style. Unlawful harassment is harassment based on a “protected category,” such as “sex.” But it’s not just limited to sexual harassment. It includes an ever expanding list of other “protected categories,” including harassment based on race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, and sexual orientation. Prohibited harassment policies and training are key to preventing unlawful harassment claims. If your employee has complained of unlawful harassment immediate and legally proper handling of the complaint is critical to minimizing or avoiding liability. We can help you satisfy your legal obligations to prevent and correct unlawful harassment in the workplace by conducting a prompt, thorough, and unbiased workplace investigation. If an employee has complained or you have been sued, time is of the essence. This cannot wait until tomorrow.

Including Family/Medical, Disability, Pregnancy Disability, etc. Leave of absence laws are often misunderstood due to their complexity and the way they interact with common workplace issues (such as tardiness, absenteeism, and use of sick pay, vacation or PTO). Your employee leave obligations may sneak up on you: workers’ compensation leave, reasonable accommodation leave, pregnancy disability leave, family medical leave, military leave, organ or bone marrow donor leave, school discipline leave, victims of crime leave, jury, witness duty leave, etc. Employee leave issues are complex. They can create legal exposure for businesses unaware of the legal requirements and how to navigate them, especially when they overlap.

PAGA allows California employees to seek civil penalties on behalf of themselves, their fellow workers and the State of California. Responding to a PAGA claim can be tricky given the scope and complexity of the statute. Additionally, an employer can face significant penalties if the employee prevails. A PAGA defense attorney is essential to an effective response. Employer Guidance Group and our colleagues understand PAGA’s intricacies and have years of experience vigorously defending their clients’ interests to resolve claims brought against employers.

You and your employees can agree to have a private arbitrator decide employee issues rather than a jury of your supposed “peers.” Arbitration of employee claims is experiencing resurgence. Since the California Supreme Court’s 2000 Armendariz decision, the utility of mandatory binding arbitration had diminished, particularly for small/medium employers. But decisions from the United States Supreme Court have since brought mandatory arbitration back to life especially in the context of class action and representative action waivers and possibly in overruling the Armendariz requirements.

These types of claims are usually business on business lawsuits. They involve employees jumping ship and going to work for a competitor. Anytime your former employee takes what you consider to be your confidential or private information and then uses it to compete against you – to solicit your clients for example – you have a misappropriation of trade secrets/unfair competition issue. Or vice versa: if you take on an employee and they disclose your competitor’s trade secret information you could be sued. We help you protect your trade secrets through written agreements and evaluate your exposure whether you are the victim of trade secrets misappropriation and unfair competition or the accused. And if representation in court is necessary, we will aggressively represent your interests.

Believe it or not, your employees have privacy rights in your workplace. Employment law issues that relate to the right to privacy include: background checks, drug testing, video surveillance/recording, computer and e-mail monitoring, and yes, in monitoring social media use. If your company does any of the above, we can help you do it legally