New Developments in Labor Law:
Beginning January 1, 2009, California’s Senate Bill 940 creates new requirements for employers in the temporary service field. Although current laws require employers to pay employees at least twice a month, new law mandates that temporary service employers pay employees on a week to week assignments weekly and those working day to day daily. This bill would not apply to employees who are assigned to an employer for more than 90 days. This new law will be codified under Labor Code section 201.3. Those employers who use the services of temporary agencies should be very careful in making sure that their vendors are in compliance with this new law.
In the case of McDonald v . Antelope Valley Community College Dist. 45 Cal.4th 88, California Supreme Court held that employees may now have more than one year to file their claim and request a “Right to Sue” letter from the Department of Fair Housing as required by the FEHA Act. The Act applies to cases involving sexual harassment, sexual, racial, or disability discrimination and cases involving failure to accommodate a disability or retaliation. According to the court the doctrine of “equitable tolling” may apply to FEHAs one year statute of limitations and toll the limitations period while the employee is pursuing other available remedies such as an internal investigation by the employer or agency.