Hunton Employment & Labor Perspectives

Hunton & Williams is pleased to bring together industry experts in technology and procurement to host our next IT/Procurement Leadership Forum in Richmond. Join us as we discuss some of the most pressing legal and business issues facing customers in the technology and procurement space.

This forum will provide guidance on a number of key topics, including autonomics and robotic process automation, the legal implications of the National Labor Relations Board’s new joint employer decision, and software audits and IT contracting best practices. These forums are designed to ...

On October 19, 2015, the Judges Division of the NLRB updated its 2010 ALJ Bench Book by issuing a new 2015 edition. The Bench Book serves as a procedural and evidentiary reference for ALJs and litigants during and in preparation for NLRB trials. As such, the Bench Book, and the precedent and authorities within, are often cited to throughout the course of litigation at an NLRB trial.

As we have reported in this space, the National Labor Relations Board (“Board”) made waves several weeks ago with its highly controversial new test for determining if an entity is a “joint employer” of another entity’s employees. Browning-Ferris Industries of California, Inc., 362 NLRB No. 186 (2015). The Board has wasted no time in seeking to extend its new test to the health care industry.

Starting January 1, 2016, many employers in the District of Columbia will be required to provide commuter benefits to their employees. The Program applies to any District of Columbia employer with 20 or more employees. The term “employees” is defined broadly to include “any individual employed by an employer.” Covered employers must offer the commuter benefits to any employee regardless of the number of hours worked.

Roland Juarez will present a webinar on “Defending California Wage and Hour Litigation Amid New Legislation and Court Decisions” on Wednesday, October 28, 2015.

Details and Registration

In late August, California legislators advanced Senate Bill 358 which aimed to further close gender pay gaps in California.  Considered one of the strongest proposed equal pay laws in the nation, Governor Brown indicated he would support SB 358, known as the California Fair Pay Act.  The bill was presented to Governor Brown for signing in early September.  Over a month after SB 358 was placed onto Governor Brown’s desk, on October 6, 2015, Governor Brown signed the bill into law.  The SB 358 amends Section 1197.5 of the California Labor Code and requires that an employer “not pay any of its employees at wage rates less than the rates paid to employees of the opposite sex for substantially similar work, when viewed as a composite of skill, effort, and responsibility, and performed under similar working conditions.” For an in-depth discussion of the California Fair Pay Act’s provisions, please visit Hunton & Williams LLP’s previous blog post.

In a move that could significantly increase the cost and expense of defending a Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) collective action, a federal district court Judge has dispensed with the traditional method for joining putative class members in an FLSA collective action. The Judge is going to permit employees to join if they submit a notice.  Such a move could lead to more protracted litigation and will certainly be appealed. In Turner, et al. v. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., No. 1:14-cv-02612, Senior U.S. District Judge John L. Kane of the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado granted the plaintiffs’ motion for conditional certification and judicial notice to the class. The case involves plaintiffs’ wage and hour claims against Chipotle under the Fair Labor Standards Act and the state laws of Arizona, California, Colorado and New Jersey. That the plaintiffs’ motion was granted is not, in and of itself, notable. But what is remarkable is the procedure applied for those who would seek to join the suit.

Over the weekend, California Governor Jerry Brown vetoed a bill aimed at prohibiting mandatory employment arbitration agreements as a condition of employment.  The bill also would have made it unlawful for an employer to discriminate or retaliate against an employee who refused to sign an arbitration agreement.  The Governor’s veto marks a victory for the dozens of business associations (and California employers) that opposed the bill.

Robert Flowers and Alan Marcuis will present a webinar on “Compensation & Contracts” to the Independent Community Bankers of America on Wednesday, October 14, 2015.

Robert Flowers and Alan Marcuis will present a webinar on “Compensation & Contracts” to the Independent Community Bankers of America on Wednesday, October 14, 2015.

On Friday October 2, 2015, Governor Jerry Brown signed AB 1506 into law, amending California’s Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) to provide an employer the right to cure certain technical violations of the California Wage Statement Law (Labor Code § 226) before the employer can be sued.  The law sets forth specific steps that must be taken before a technical violation can be cured.

Emily Burkhardt Vicente will present “Litigating Private Attorney General Act Claims in the Aftermath of Supreme Court Decisions” at the California State Bar’s Annual Meeting on Sunday, October 11, 2015.

Link to Sunday’s schedule here.

Hunton & Williams is pleased to announce the release of its newly designed and mobile-responsive Immigration and Nationality Law Blog, www.huntonimmigrationlawblog.com. “Our immigration law blog has been a valuable resource for US employers,” said Ian Band, who heads the firm’s immigration and nationality practice. “This new version of the immigration law blog offers our readers easier and instant access to information in real time, more interactive features and the opportunity for greater analysis and comment on developments in US immigration law.”

Hunton & Williams is pleased to announce the release of its newly designed and mobile-responsive Immigration and Nationality Law Blog, www.huntonimmigrationlawblog.com. “Our immigration law blog has been a valuable resource for US employers,” said Ian Band, who heads the firm’s immigration and nationality practice. “This new version of the immigration law blog offers our readers easier and instant access to information in real time, more interactive features and the opportunity for greater analysis and comment on developments in US immigration law.”

The Ninth Circuit ruled on Monday, September 28, that California Private Attorney General Act (“PAGA”) claims cannot be waived in employment arbitration agreements, following the rule announced by the California Supreme Court in Iskanian v. CLS Transportation Los Angeles, LLC, 59 Cal. 4th 348 (2014).  With this 2-1 ruling, the Ninth Circuit majority found that the Iskanian rule barring PAGA waivers is not preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”).