Posted on January 13th, 2022
Below is a complete transcript of this video.
What’s up fellow entrepreneurs as it has become tradition on this channel, at the end of each year, we give a heads up about new laws that will be coming into effect in the next year. But before we get into today’s video, remember I’m an attorney, but I’m not your attorney. So please seek out competent legal advice for your question or concern.
So this year, governor Gavin Newsom signed into law, a number of bills affecting California players. I’m gonna go through them briefly. And, if there are some that need further clarification, I’ll likely do so in a separate video.
All right. So the major changes in the coming year include extending the limitation on confidentiality pro provisions and settlement agreements to all forms of workplace harassment and discrimination, limiting employer’s ability to require that employees sign non-disparagement agreements, expanding job protected family, leave for employees who need to care for the serious health condition of a parent in law, increasing Cal OSHA’s enforcement powers, including adding the ability to issue enterprise wide and egregious violations and criminalizing wage theft and increasing the California labor commissioner’s power to recover amounts due to the labor commissioner under a final judgment.
All right, that’s the overview. So let me get into each E each one specifically. And, um, unless I, uh, note otherwise all the new laws will, should take effect on January 1st, 2022.
So let’s start with SB 3 31, which limits restrictions on the disclosure of factual information in a settlement agreement for a claim filed in a civil act civil action or complaint filed in an administer action regarding workplace harassment or discrimination.
The previous law only made these similar restrictions applicable to acts of sexual harassment, assault or discrimination. Now it’s for quite a bit more. All right, so SB 6 57 permits employers to distribute information that they’re required to physically post in the workplace to employee by email.
That is a minor victory for the home team. I don’t think it does very much the sta because the statute doesn’t relieve employers of the obligation to post physical copies of required notice in the workplace.
Same thing really SBA 07 increases. The time that employers are required to retain personnel records for applicants and employees from two years to four years from when the records were created or an employment action was taken. All right, and the law gives the D DFEH up to two years to complete its investigation and issue a right to Sue notice for class or group or employment discrimination complaints.
All right, the bill also extends the period in which an individual can file a civil action for violations of certain statutes by tolling that period while the DFE investigates and or takes action on a complaint.
This bill really sucks because what it does is extends the statute of limitations, period. I’ll probably do a separate video on SBA 807. All right. SB 606 expands Cal OSHA’s enforcement abilities by among other things, creating a rebuttable presumption that an employer with multiple work sites has committed an enterprise wide violation.
All right, so SB 606 is a bad one. I’ll do a video on that one, likely AB 1033, add parent in law to the definition of parent under the California family rights act, not too bad. AB 1033 also makes changes to the small employer, family leave, mediation pilot program. Okay. That’s not that important.
SB 639 phases out existing law that allows employers to pay employees with mental or physical is less than minimum wage. I don’t think this particular Bill’s bad for employers, but I think it will hurt the ability of the disabled to find employment.
So unintended consequences there AB 1 0, 0 3 makes the intentional theft of wages and other compensation of greater than 950 for a single employee, 2350 for two, or within a 12 month period punishable as grant theft. This is awful. The law defines employee to include an independent contractor and employer to include the hiring entity of an independent contractor.
Grant theft may be punishable either as a misdemeanor by imprisonment for up to one year or a felony, with imprisonment for 16 months or two, two to three years. All right, this is a bad one. Does that mean a paycheck? Mistake could land you in jail.
Now, can you imagine doing time with hardened criminals because of a wage violation? It’s crazy. I’m gonna have to investigate this new law further. Not only does it seem extreme, but how is, you know, intentional defined.
All right, SB 5 72, the labor commissioner to create a lean on real property as an alternative to a judgment lie, to secure the amounts due to the labor commissioner under any final judgment. This one is scary. Employers should be very wary of having any real property in their names from now on is, is what I think. SB 6 46 creates a limited exception from BA January, uh, about janitorial for janitor unionized, janitor employees.
I did a video about this already. SB 7 27 expands existing direct contractor liability to include penalties and liquidated damages owed by the subcontractor for contracts entered into on or after January 1st, 2022.
The bill allows the labor commissioner to enforce li against a direct contract. In other words, if a subcontractor doesn’t pay their crew, the general contractor is responsible for labor violation.
Here’s another one I should probably do a separate video on let’s see AB 6 54, which went into effect on October 5th, updated the COVID 19 notice requirements, uh, existing required employees to report to employees within one business day of a potential COVID 19 exposure, existing loss required employers to report COVID 19 outbreaks to the local health department within 48 hours, AB 6 54 updated the health department reporting deadline to be the later of one business day or 48 hours.
The law also clarified that the individual who must receive notice are those who were at the same workplace as a COVID 19 case during the infectious period. The law also extended the employer exemption from the excuse me, COVID 19 outbreak Porter requirement to certain licensed entities, including community clinics, adult day, healthcare centers, community care facilities, childcare facilities. The law will be repealed on January 1st, 2023.
All right, SB 62 bands peace rate pay for garment workers instead requiring that they be paid at least minimum wage. The law also expands liability, unpaid wages to fashion brands among others by making garment manufacturers, contractors, and brand GS joint, and several liable for the full amount of unpaid wages and any other compensation penalties attorney’s fees due to the garment, uh, manufacturing employee, the law also imposes a 200 fine payable to the employee for each pay period where the employee is paid by a peace rate and violation of law.
AB 7 0 1 requires warehouse distribution centers with 100 or more employees at a single warehouse distribution center, or a thousand or more employees at one or more warehouse distribution centers in the state to provide employees with a written description of each quota that the employee is subject to, including the number of tasks to be for performed or materials to be produced or handled and any potential adverse employment action that could result from failure to meet the quota.
AB 184 requires the retail department store stores that are physically located in California with 500 or more employees, and that sell childcare items or toys to maintain, to maintain a general gender neutral section displaying a reasonable selection of items, regardless of whether they have been traditionally marketed to girls or boys.
So beginning, January 1st, 2024, the bill imposes civil penalties for violations of law of two 50 for a first violation, 500 for a subsequent violation. Wow. Are you kidding me? So California wants to regulate how you lay out your toy stores. This is nonsense.
Well, since there are not any traditional toy stores left, um, you know, more wasted and useless legislation as far as I’m concerned, unless you’re target or Walmart. All right. So those are the, the biggie for this coming year, obviously throughout the year more come out.
I’ll do specific videos on the ones that affect my audience, which is the small business owners in California.
All right. Until next time be productive.
