“Unlimited vacation”—sounds great, doesn’t it? Company after company, from Netflix to Goldman Sachs, have switched to so-called “unlimited vacation” plans. Employers market these plans as pro-employee benefits. But are they really? “Unlimited paid time off is positioned as if it’s an amazing benefit for employees, where in fact it actually...
On March 3, 2022, President Biden signed the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act. This new law—a result of the #MeToo movement—means that employers cannot force employees into secret arbitration for claims of sexual harassment or sexual assault. Since arbitration generally tends to favor employers over employees, this law...
State and federal law protect employees who “blow the whistle” on their employers. These protections are intended to encourage people who have information about their employers’ unsafe or fraudulent practices to come forward. But how do you prove whistleblower retaliation? The whistleblower laws protect employees who report illegal employment...
At the end of the fiscal year and beginning of the new year, employers often give raises and bonuses. These pay adjustments are often made in the secrecy of annual reviews and Zoom one-on-ones that obscure any transparency into the process. Employees who ask questions are often told their...
You might be shocked to discover that in this day and age, some employees are forced by aggressive production quotas to originate in water bottles in order to avoid being fired. Unfortunately, not only is this happening at one of the world’s biggest companies—Amazon—but Amazon was forced to publicly...
Computer and artificial intelligence algorithms are used widely to reduce workloads for humans and produce fast, reliable results. They are programmed to do tasks based on past and predictable patterns. They are considered objective, impartial decision-makers that filter the most relevant sources for your google searches, reorder the content...
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) prohibit employers from discriminating based on disability. Employers must engage in an interactive process to determine reasonable accommodations that allow a disabled employee to work successfully. Often, an employee will want to bring a service...
Preparing to have a baby is hard enough without the challenge of navigating the developed world’s worst maternity leave policies. Fortunately, in California, expecting and new mothers are entitled to more maternity leave than in the rest of the country. Some of it is even paid! While this is...
The federal False Claims Act (FCA) is one of the most powerful tools in the federal government’s fraud-fighting arsenal. The FCA was passed during the Civil War to “root out fraud against the government.” Since 1863, Congress has updated the law several times to give it more teeth and...
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease. People who live with MS often experience patterns of exacerbation and remission. When symptoms are in remission, people with MS may be able to work with minimal accommodations. But when symptoms are exacerbated, these employees may require significant accommodations. Unfortunately, employees in...