Labor and Employment Law Section

CLA’s Labor and Employment Law Section is proud to present its 39th Annual Meeting on July 14 and 15, 2023. Our Annual Meeting is all grown up and ready to share its wisdom with you! Here are the top four reasons you should attend. Read more

Duran v. EmployBridge Holding Co. (CA5 F084167, filed 4/27/23, ord. pub. 5/30/23) PAGA Arbitration  The applicable arbitration agreement stated that “claims under PAGA … are not arbitrable under this Agreement.” The court found it not objectively reasonable to interpret the phrase “claims under PAGA” to include some PAGA claims while excluding others, and thus the carve-out provision excluded all PAGA claims from the agreement to arbitrate. Accordingly, the court affirmed the trial court’s denial of the motion to arbitrate Duran’s… Read more

The July Law Review opens with an MCLE article by Beth W. Mora that looks back at #MeToo—the social movement launched by a single tweet that received more than 12 million responses in its first 24 hours—and considers the legislative reforms that movement spurred across the nation, as well as the pending bills it inspired. Read more

It is with great concern and determination that I write this month’s message, as we collectively strive to combat the injustices that continue to persist in our society. Read more

Labor Law 101 will provide an overview of labor law that beginning labor law practitioners and employment law attorneys of all experience levels should know. Read more

Atkins v. St. Cecilia Catholic School (CA2/8 B314220 4/28/23) Ministerial Exception The trial court granted St. Cecilia’s motion for summary judgment on Atkins’ age discrimination claim under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (Gov. Code, § 12900 et seq.) Read more

Seifu v. Lyft, Inc. (CA2/4 B301774 3/30/23) Arbitration| PAGA Waiver. Plaintiff filed suit against Lyft under the Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (PAGA) (Lab. Code, § 2698 et seq., alleging that Lyft misclassified him and other drivers as independent contractors rather than employees, thereby violating multiple provisions of the Labor Code. Under Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana (2022) ___ U.S. ___ [142 S.Ct. 1906] Read more

I want to remind folks that the deadline to apply to become a member of our Section’s Executive Committee is coming up on April 15, 2023. You can apply here and I look forward to hopefully working with you in the future! Read more

Galaza v. Mayorkas (9th Cir. 21-15464 2/28/23) Aviation and Transportation Security Act | Preemption over Rehabilitation Act  The ASTA establishes basic qualifications for the position of ATSA security screener, and vests the Administrator of the TSA with the authority to determine additional employment standards and training for security screeners. The Rehabilitation Act protects qualified individuals with disabilities from being subjected to discrimination under activity conducted by any Executive agency because of his or her disability. 29 U.S.C. § 794(a).  The ATSA authorized the Administrator… Read more

The March 2023 issue of our Section’s California Labor & Employment Law Review leads off with an MCLE article questioning the impartiality and independence of attorney workplace investigations by Andrew H. Friedman and Courtney Abrams. Read more