This month’s newsletter highlights several important legal and regulatory developments that HR leaders, executives, and compliance teams need to watch closely.
First, a recent California Court of Appeal decision in Hirdman v. Charter Communications provided clarity on how employers may calculate paid sick leave for commissioned outside sales employees. The court confirmed that employers can use base hourly pay — excluding commissions — so long as the same method is applied to other forms of paid leave. This ruling offers employers much-needed consistency in managing leave benefits for commission-based staff. Read the full story.
Another major update is California’s announcement that the statewide minimum wage will increase to $16.90 per hour beginning Jan. 1. This change, driven by the state’s annual inflation-based adjustment process, will apply to all employers regardless of size. This increase reflects rising consumer prices and will impact payroll planning, especially for businesses with large hourly workforces.
Artificial intelligence also took center stage in June, when the California Civil Rights Council approved new rules extending the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) to cover AI-driven employment practices. Beginning in October, employers using automated decision systems (ADS) or AI-powered tools in hiring and other employment decisions will face heightened compliance obligations. These regulations are expected not only to influence California businesses...
Claims that Brigitte Macron is a transgender woman first emerged online in 2021 and have since gone viral. “Two billion people have been exposed to this story in French and 2.5 billion in English,...