Compliance Stuff

In 2022, California passed  Assembly Bill (AB) 1949  which amended the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) to provide for bereavement leave. The law took effect in January 2023, but here are some reminders for employers about bereavement leave requirements. Under the law, employers with five or more employees must allow eligible employees to take up to five unpaid days of bereavement leave for certain family member s. Consistent with the CFRA’s broad definition, a “family member” means a spouse, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, domestic partner, or parent-in-law. Employers may voluntarily allow bereavement leave for a person not defined as a family member under the law. Although bereavement leave is unpaid, employers must allow employees to use any accrued paid sick days or personal days to receive pay during their bereavement leave. Employees are required to follow the employer’s bereavement leave policy pertaining to notice. Employees are not required to ta...

California regulators recently adopted regulations regarding automated-decision systems (ADS) in the workplace, aiming to protect against employment discrimination given the dramatic rise in artificial intelligence use in employment. On March 21, the California Civil Council of the Civil Rights Department (CRD) voted to approve the rules, which now must be cleared by the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) and published by the Secretary of State. If they pass these final hurdles, they will likely become effective on July 1. Read on for key takeaways from the updated regulations and three steps you should take to stay compliant. Brief Background Employers are increasingly using AI tools during the employee lifecycle. They bring obvious advantages, such as saving time, processing efficiencies, and providing insightful data on people analytics . On the flipside, they can lead to potential discriminatory practices without proper oversight and governance. California leads the way in proposed...

Background The Trump administration recently issued a series of executive orders aimed at restricting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. These executive orders have impacted businesses and organizations across the public and private sectors by revoking prior executive orders that promoted DEI and imposing new compliance obligations to “combat illegal private-sector DEI preferences, mandates, policies, programs, and activities.” Executive Order 14173 (“EO 14173”), titled “ Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity ,” is of particular concern for federal contractors—those businesses and other organizations that contract with the United States government to provide goods or services in exchange for funds appropriated by Congress. Among other things, EO 14173 directs federal agencies to require that contractors certify that they do not “operate any programs promoting DEI that violate any applicable federal anti-discrimination laws.” Importantly, EO 1...

Pay stub transparency – the practice of providing all the details about an employee's earnings and deductions on their pay stub – is becoming standard across the United States, and Ohio just became the latest state to impose such obligations on employers. The Pay Stub Protection Act, which takes effect April 9, will require employers to provide employees with an itemized earnings statement that lists wages, deductions, additions, and much more relevant information. What do you need to know about this new law, and how should you prepare for the effective date? The Law in a Nutshell Once April 9 rolls around, you will need to ensure the following information is contained on each and every earnings statement you provide your workers: The name and address of both employee and employer; Total gross wages and total net wages; A breakdown of additions and deductions from wages, with a brief explanation of each; For hourly employees, the total hours worked, hourly wage rate, and any overt...

A bill introduced in the California legislature this session aims to prevent employers from posting job notices for positions that don’t actually exist – a growing trend referred to as “ghost” job postings. If you’re not familiar with this practice, read on to learn about why employers are increasingly taking such actions and the steps California lawmakers are taking to try to put a stop to it. What are “Ghost” Job Postings? Ghost job postings are advertisements for roles employers have no immediate intention to fill. Candidates, often unaware, apply and even interview for these roles, investing significant time and resources only to find the positions never truly existed – or never learned that they have applied for and perhaps interviewed for a fake job. What Would AB 1251 Prohibit? The proposed bill,  AB 1251 , requires private employers to explicitly disclose in job advertisements whether the position advertised is an existing vacancy. Employers failing to provide this disclos...

  On March 28, 2025, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated its previous ruling that permitted a $15 per hour minimum wage for federal contractors, shortly after President Donald Trump revoked the Biden administration rule setting that wage rate. Quick Hits The Fifth Circuit vacated its decision to uphold a $15 per hour minimum wage for federal contractors. The court acted shortly after President Trump rescinded a Biden administration rule raising the minimum wage for federal contractors to $15 per hour. An Obama-era rule establishing a $13.30 per hour minimum wage for federal contractors still stands. On the website for the U.S. Department of Labor, the agency  said  it is “no longer enforcing” the final rule that raised the minimum wage for federal contractors to $15 per hour with an annual increase depending on inflation. As of January 1, 2025, the minimum wage for federal contractors was $17.75 per hour, but that rate is no longer in effect. Therefore, an Obama-e...