Ogletree Deakins OSHA Tracker City Feature: Seattle, Las Vegas Had Most OSHA Inspections

In December 2022, Ogletree Deakins launched its OSHA Tracker based on analysis of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) publicly available inspection and citation data, which dates back to the 1970s. Now, in addition to featuring individual state data and OSHA regional information, the OSHA Tracker has been enhanced with city information.

New California Bill Aims to Require Cal/OSHA to Adopt General Industry Workplace Violence Prevention Regulations

Workplace violence is a serious concern for California employers in all industries, but the state’s workplace violence prevention regulations are currently applicable only to the healthcare industry. A bill recently introduced in the California Legislature would require the state’s occupational safety and health regulator to broaden the scope of workplace violence prevention regulations.

California Pushes Employers to Make Drinking Water More Easily Available to Workers

On February 6, 2023, California’s Occupational Safety and Health Appeals Board held that employers must provide their outdoor workers with drinking water at a location “as close as practicable,” effectively creating a new precedent for interpreting the state’s requirements related to the proximity of drinking water.

Los Angeles Wage Office Shifts Interpretation of New Fair Work Week Ordinance

Part of a recently passed pay predictability ordinance in Los Angeles is already causing some confusion for employers over a provision requiring retail employers to pay workers a premium for working a second shift within ten hours of the first shift. Such tightly scheduled shifts often occur when a worker is needed to close and then open the next day, referred to as “clopening” shifts.

California Assembly Bill Pushes for Women’s Designated Restrooms on Jobsites

On February 7, 2023, California Assembly Member Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-16) introduced Assembly Bill (AB) No. 521, which calls on the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) to submit a rulemaking proposal to the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board that would “require at least one women’s designated restroom for jobsites with two or more required water closets.”

Los Angeles Predictable Scheduling Law Set to Take Effect

Retail employers in Los Angeles will soon be required to provide employees with written, good faith estimates of their schedules and offer extra hours to current employees before hiring new workers under a new ordinance that takes effect on April 1, 2023. The “Los Angeles Fair Work Week Ordinance” makes the city the latest jurisdiction to pass a predictable scheduling law,

California’s Tech Layoff Boom: What Employers Need to Know About Federal and State WARN Act Triggers

With the recent proliferation of Big Tech layoffs in California, it may be time for employers doing business in California to revisit the requirements surrounding the federal and state layoff laws. Employers that are covered under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act and/or its California counterpart, the Cal-WARN Act (California Labor Code Sections 1400-1408), are required to carry out certain requirements before implementing mass terminations. Here is a brief overview of the federal and state requirements with a focus on when the laws’ notice provisions are triggered.

Ninth Circuit Blocks California’s Ban on Mandatory Arbitration in Employment

On February 15, 2023, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked a 2020 California law that attempted to prohibit employers from requiring employees and job applicants to agree to arbitration as a condition of employment. The Court’s 2-1 panel decision in Chamber of Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America v. Bonta resolved ambiguity regarding the enforceability of California Assembly Bill (AB) 51.

Cal/OSHA and Workplace Violence Prevention: What Is an Employer’s Duty Under Current Standards and Guidelines?

Workplace violence is a growing concern in California and across the country, as evidenced by numerous recent tragic incidents in the news. These recent incidents may highlight for employers the importance of taking steps to prevent and respond to workplace violence, and they may also leave employers wondering about their obligations under workplace safety laws with regard to workplace violence prevention.

San Francisco Passes Ordinance Requiring Private Employers to Provide Paid Military Leave

On January 20, 2023, San Francisco Mayor London Breed approved a city ordinance that will require large, private employers to provide differential paid leave for military reservists called up to active duty. The “Military Leave Pay Protection Act” adds Article 33Q to the city Police Code, and will make San Francisco the first major city in the United States to require that private employers provide differential paid leave to employees who are members of the military while they perform military service, the sponsor of the ordinance said when introducing it last year.

California Labor Agency Posts FAQs Relating to New Pay Scale Posting Requirements

Employers posting jobs to be filled in California must now include a pay range in the posting under new requirements that took effect at the beginning of 2023. Senate Bill (SB) 1162, which was signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in September 2022, seeks to address racial and gender pay disparities by requiring employers to post pay ranges in job postings and expanding employers’ pay data reporting obligations with the California Civil Rights Department (CRD). In December 2022, the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) released updated guidance for employers regarding the compliance with the new pay transparency obligations.

Cal/OSHA’s COVID-19 ETS Will Remain in Effect Pending OAL Approval of COVID-19 Prevention Non-Emergency Regulations

New COVID-19 prevention regulations adopted by the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board on December 15, 2022, were sent to the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) for approval. The new regulations will not take effect until approved by OAL, which has thirty working days to complete its review.

California’s New Pay Transparency Law: Pay Data Reporting Obligation Changes for 2023

California recently enacted a landmark pay transparency law that requires employers to disclose pay ranges in job postings, joining a growing number of states and municipalities that impose such requirements aimed at improving pay equity. But beyond the pay scale requirements, Senate Bill (SB) 1162, signed in September 2022 by Governor Gavin Newsom, further broke new ground in expanding pay data reporting processes and requirements for California employers, and thus increasing employers’ compliance burden.

California Judge Temporarily Enjoins Implementation of FAST Recovery Act

On December 30, 2022, a Sacramento County Superior Court judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking the State of California—in particular, the California Department of Industrial Relations—from implementing the provisions of Assembly Bill (AB) No. 257, the Fast Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act (FAST Recovery Act).

Ogletree Deakins’ New OSHA Tracker: Data Related to California, Texas, and Florida

Ogletree Deakins’ recently released OSHA Tracker tool allows employers to search and filter Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) data to identify emerging issues and OSHA enforcement trends. This interactive tool compiles comprehensive OSHA inspection, citation, and penalty data and allows employers to create custom searches and filter by OSHA region, state, industry, or date.

State and Major Locality Minimum Wage Updates for 2023

Several state and local minimum wage rates will increase in 2023, with a majority of the changes effective on January 1, 2023. The following chart lists state and certain major locality minimum wage increases for 2023—and future years, if available—along with the related changes in the maximum tip credit and minimum cash wage for tipped employees.

California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board Approves Final Language for Cal/OSHA’s COVID-19 Regulation

On December 15, 2022, the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board adopted the COVID-19 Prevention Non-Emergency Regulation, modifying Title 8 of the General Industry Safety Orders. The regulation passed, 6–1, in a near-unanimous vote of the seven-member Standards Board.

Ogletree Deakins Launches Interactive OSHA Tracker Tool

Analysis of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) publicly available inspection and citation data, which dates back to the 1970s, can help employers forecast and spot enforcement trends and changes, identify new and emerging issues, and correlate information to make unique connections that may not be readily apparent. To assist employers, Ogletree Deakins has developed the OSHA Tracker, a purpose-built resource designed to provide clients and consumers with easy-to-use search tools and filters to convert OSHA data into more digestible and useful information.

Cal/OSHA Proposes Final Language for COVID-19 Regulation to Be Voted on November 17, 2022, at Standards Board Meeting

Following on the California Department of Public Health’s (CDPH) issuance on October 14, 2022, of a State Public Health Officer (SPHO) order that clarified the definition of “close contact” and “infectious period” to provide entities with strategies for working together, the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board issued a fifteen-day notice with requests for written comments on proposed updated COVID-19 regulations to Title 8 of the General Industry Safety Orders.

CDPH Order Updates Definitions of ‘Close Contact’ and ‘Infectious Period,’ Clarifies What Is and Is Not Mandatory

On October 14, 2022, California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Director Tomás J. Aragόn issued a State Public Health Officer Order further clarifying the definitions of “close contact” and “infectious period” to provide entities and individuals with strategies for working together in a post-COVID-19 workplace.

California Takes Initial Steps to Adopt Revised Heat Illness and Wildfire Smoke Standards

On September 29, 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill (AB) No. 2243, an amendment to section 6721 of the California Labor Code that will ultimately lead to changes to the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health’s (Cal/OSHA) heat illness and wildfire smoke standards (sections 3395 and 5141.1 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations).

California Federal Judge Applies Viking River to Dismiss Representative PAGA Claims

In Johnson v. Lowe’s Home Centers, LLC, a decision issued on September 21, 2022, a federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California issued an order compelling arbitration of a plaintiff’s individual claims under the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) and dismissing the remaining representative PAGA claims.

California Appellate Court Affirms Attorneys’ Fees for Meal and Rest Break Claims

On September 12, 2022, the California Court of Appeal held that employees bringing successful rest break and meal period claims are entitled to recover attorneys’ fees under California Labor Code section 218.5. The decision reversed a prior denial of attorneys’ fees by the appellate court following the Supreme Court of California’s May 2022 decision in Naranjo v. Spectrum Security Services, Inc.