02/07/2008
CONTACT: Melissa Sharp, 202-554-9000 or Michelle Orrock, 916-448-9904
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- If you are a small-business owner, chances are you've asked yourself: What notices must I post at my business? Is my secretary exempt from overtime pay? Can I cut my employee's hourly rate of pay? Can I give comp time off rather than pay overtime? Unless you're an experienced labor attorney, the simple answer is that you can never be sure.
Since no one wants to call an expensive lawyer every time they have a question concerning the do's and don'ts of hiring, or managing and paying their employees, the National Federation of Independent Business Legal Foundation has partnered with DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary US LLP to create the California Employment Law Handbook for Small Business.
The California Employment Law Handbook for Small Business gives employers the nuts and bolts behind the Fair Labor Standards Act, California's hours of work and payroll practices laws, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and California's Fair Employment and Housing Act, among others. In addition, the handbook outlines the basic requirements of federal immigration, federal and state safety and health laws, as well as California-specific laws, like unemployment compensation, workers compensation, witness duty leave, school visitation leave and garnishment of wages.
"The California Employment Law Handbook contains a wealth of information that we hope will benefit California small-business owners. This resource is a one-stop shop for California business owners wanting to have an easy reference to the federal and state employment laws affecting their business," said Karen Harned, executive director of NFIB's Legal Foundation. "NFIB hopes this handbook will make complying with these laws a bit less confusing for small-business owners in California."
NFIB members can download the handbook. Non-members may receive access to the PDF for a fee of $75 by contacting 800-NFIB-NOW.
The California Employment Law Handbook is the latest in the Legal Foundation's simple guidance materials accessible to NFIB members online at www.nfib.com/legal. The Legal Foundation's other handbooks for members include Federal Employment Law Handbook, Small Business Guide to Handling OSHA Inspections, Small Business Guide to Document Retention and Model Employee Handbook for Small Business. These guidance materials are also available for purchase to non- NFIB members. Please call 800-NFIB-NOW for more information.
Below are examples of information business owners can find in the California Employment Law Handbook:
- Failing to comply with any aspect of wage and hour laws can lead to costly civil and criminal fines, such as $1,100 per minimum wage or overtime pay violation or $10,000 for each child worker employed illegally.
- As of Jan. 1, the California minimum wage increased from $7.50 per hour to $8 per hour.
- California's Fair Employment and Housing Act generally applies to any business owner who employs, or has employed, five or more employees in California during 20 or more calendar weeks within the calendar year preceding an alleged violation of the act.
- California law requires supervisors who work for employers that employ 50 or more employees to complete at least two hours of training in the prevention of sexual harassment every two years. New supervisors must complete the sexual harassment training within six months of assuming a supervisory position.
Please see the California Employment Law Handbook for more details on wage and hour, discrimination, health and safety, and other laws California small-business owners need to be aware of to keep their business in compliance with the law and out of the courtroom.
The NFIB Legal Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization created to protect the rights of America's small-business owners by providing advisory material on legal issues and by ensuring that the voice of small business is heard in the nation's courts. The National Federation of Independent Business is the nation's leading small-business advocacy association, with offices in Washington, D.C., and all 50 state capitals.
