Labor Industry

Being an employer is a daunting task. Hundreds of employment regulations, insurance guidelines, Senate bills and Federal Acts (such as FMLA, FLSA, HIPAA, TEFRA and FEHA, to name a few) distract business owners from focusing on their core operations and profitability. In particular, California employers need to be aware that California Labor Law differs from federal law in significant ways that can make life even more difficult, if not downright treacherous, for businesses with limited human resources expertise.

Although the Fair Labor Standards Act sets a minimum standard of protection for employees working in the USA, individual states are permitted to extend the Act to provide a higher degree of protection to employees in that state. California has taken full advantage of that facility, and there are many aspects of this act that California has applied more liberally than practically any other state.

Take overtime law for example. California labor law requires an employer to pay an employee overtime after 8 hours work in one day at 1.5 times the normal rate, and after 12 hours work in any one day at twice the standard rate. However, this does not apply to ‘exempt’ employees, such as those involved in managerial or intellectual work. Federal law only requires time and a half to be paid for any time worked over 40 hours in a week. Read the rest of this entry »