In the past year, the California legislature has passed several substantive laws pertaining to employees in the workplace. They range from mandating minimum sick leave requirements to enhancing an employer’s legal responsibility for their independent contract workers. Below is a summary of the main provisions and how they might affect California businesses.

 Mandatory paid sick leave. As of July 1, 2015, under the Paid Sick Leave law, all employers regardless of the number of employees, will be required to grant sick leave to employees who work for 30 days or more in one year at the rate of 1 hour per every 30 hours worked. The law specifies carry-over and accrual limits, but employers should carefully review their own policies to ascertain whether existing policies already meet the minimum standards.

 Discrimination protection for volunteers and unpaid interns. An amendment to the Fair Employment and Housing Act extends protection against discrimination and harassment to unpaid interns and volunteers in the workplace on the basis of race, religion, gender, pregnancy, marital status, or disability and other factors. This legislation represents an attempt by the legislature to provide part-time or non-salaried employees with the same legal protections as traditional employees.

 Liability for independent contact workers. Under this new law, employers will be jointly liable with independent contractors for workers compensation insurance and wage violations against those laborers engaged in work that is within the course of the employer’s business or performed at the employer’s work site. As a result, an employer who engages an independent contractor will bear responsibility for the provision of worker’s compensation for laborers hired by the contractor if the contractor fails to do so. This law places an additional burden on employers to ascertain the solvency of contractors and be more aware of the contractor’s relationships with their own laborers.

 Regulations on foreign labor. California legislation will prohibit contractors that hire foreign labor workers from collecting a contracting fee from the foreign worker and charging the foreign laborer expenses that are not usual and customary. This mandate will subject employers to increased oversight in a previously highly unregulated area of employment.

Small businesses face particular challenges in keeping up with the most current legislative developments and how their business practices should adapt to these changes. To learn more or to devise a plan to comply with new regulations, contact Shane Coons at 949-333-0900 or visit his website at www.ShaneCoonsLaw.com.