With the California Consumer Privacy Act in full force and effect, businesses in California and across the country are starting to wonder if the time to pass a national standard is now. However, with the 2020 election looming and little action from Washington, such a bill is unlikely to relieve California businesses in the near or even medium term future.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued clarifications for provisions in the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) regulations pertaining to paid leave. They've also released new FAQs clarifying provisions in the FFCRA related to childcare issues. Meanwhile in California, Governor Newsom has signed legislation that expands Coronavirus paid sick leave coverage to employers who have not been covered under the FFCRA, and that intensifies notification requirements in response to a potential employee exposure to the COVID-19 virus. In one way or another, these changes affect almost every California employer.

Law firm Scali Rasmussen announced today that Joseph P. Sbuttoni has joined the Firm’s Labor and Employment Law group and will be officed out of the firm’s San Diego office. “Joe has a highly specialized practice in the automotive space,” said Managing Partner, Christian Scali. “He adds tremendous value to the Firm’s clients.”

With required symptom checks and potential outbreaks among employees and customers, the Coronavirus has raised new questions regarding privacy for businesses across California.

California Labor Code Section 226 specifies numerous wage statement disclosures that employers must provide to employees each pay date. One question that has lingered is whether Section 226’s requirements apply to employees who perform some work in California but also a significant amount of work outside California. This issue has arisen in the context of a couple of cases involving airline workers who spent time both within and outside California: Ward v. United Airlines, Inc. and Oman v. Delta Airlines, Inc.

In anticipation of return to school issues that are bound to arise with so many schools currently implementing distance learning, on August 27, 2020, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) released new FAQs clarifying provisions in the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) related to childcare issues. The FFCRA provides that employees may receive paid leave if they need to miss work in order to care for a child whose school or place of care is closed, or childcare provider is unavailable, for Coronavirus reasons. The clarifications provided by these new FAQs are as follows...

Although the California Attorney General has only had the authority to enforce the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) since July 1, 2020, it could be overhauled by a new privacy law that qualified for the 2020 November ballot in California.

Title 1 of the CARES Act is referred to as the “Keeping American Workers Paid and Employed Act.” The “Keeping American Workers Paid and Employed Act” establishes an SBA Loan program called the “Paycheck Protection Program” (PPP) and process for forgiveness of the loan if certain compensation and employment metrics are met. It also expands access to Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) and provides a subsidy to help businesses repay SBA loans (with the exception of the PPP loans). Below are many of the frequently asked questions about the Paycheck Protection Program portions of the CARES Act...

Last month the California Attorney General announced that the Office of Administrative Law has approved the final California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) regulations. The final draft, submitted to OALL in late June of this year, is substantially the same as the final version, with minor tweaks that impact brick-and-mortar retailers. If your business has been waiting until final regulations to comply with the law, now is the time.

Today California’s groundbreaking consumer privacy law, known as the CCPA, is in full effect and the implementing regulations are nearly finalized. Now is therefore a good time to take a step back and consider whether your dealership is complying with the law in a way that makes good business sense.

As California employers struggle to keep on top of all the developments associated with COVID-19, more updated guidance has been issued by the CDC and State.

Does a case have to be confirmed to be reported? How do you know if the case is “work related?” The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued new guidance about reporting work-related cases of COVID-19.

As the Coronavirus pandemic continues to devastate the well-being, physically, mentally and economically, of our country and as outsiders continue to attack the dealer franchise system in a misguided attempt to weaken dealers' economic standing and future, Scali Rasmussen rises up to fight for the rights of the industry, and lends a helping hand to give dealers the tools to navigate and come out of the end of this pandemic healthier than ever.

This article is in response to the alarming frequency of meal and rest break claims and exposure that they pose to employers. Claims for meal and rest break violations are now a common, and in fact, frequent “add-on” claim for all other types of employment claims. Indeed, non-wage/hour claims, such as discrimination/harassment, wrongful termination and retaliation are now routinely accompanied by meal/rest break-related claims. Due to the proliferation of these claims, it is more important than ever for employers to be up to speed on the current state of the law and best practices for avoiding liability, both of which we will address here.

Nearly a year after California’s New Motor Vehicle Board (NMVB) considered the petition from the California New Car Dealers Association (CNCDA), which resulted in an investigation by the California DMV, Volvo has agreed to terminate it’s so-called “subscription” program in the golden state. The Volvo program—Care by Volvo (CbV)—was launched by Volvo in the United States in November, 2017 and marketed to consumers as an “all inclusive” two-year subscription service for Volvo vehicles that included maintenance, auto insurance, road hazard and tire and wheel protection for a flat “monthly fee.” The program was offered directly to consumers through Volvo’s website, promoting in particular the newly released model XC40, which was also being allocated to California franchise dealership from port stock only if they agreed to sign an amendment to their dealer agreement that made the dealers limited agents of Volvo who would consummate the CbV subscriptions.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the related economic shutdown and quarantine orders continue to weigh heavily on businesses across California, and auto dealerships are certainly no exception. During such trying times, it is only natural for dealers to begin thinking about creative ways to operate as efficiently as possible. One idea that dealers have considered is converting relationships with salespeople from one of employment to one more akin to an independent-contractor relationship, where commissions are paid to salespeople. Dealers considering such an idea must be mindful, however, of their continuing legal duties under such circumstances.

Scali Rasmussen’s Chris Scali, Bert Rasmussen and Monica Baumann examine Tesla’s direct-sales model in their article Tesla, franchising and the bottom line, published today in Wards Auto.

As we noted in our July 13, 2020 alert, Governor Newsom has taken steps to reverse some of the reopening rules across the state, focusing on indoor activities. Now local governments, in particular those in Southern California, are modifying local reopening guidance in response to the increase in COVID-19 cases across the state. We have also received word of stepped-up enforcement by local regulators. Due to these changes and increased enforcement activity, every dealer should continue to evaluate their written protocols or adopt them for the first time, if not already completed.

Scali Rasmussen has discovered trends in recent cases filed against dealers. This article—written by the firm's partners for the CNCDA Bulletin—highlights these trends to help dealers identify, review, revise and/or adopt compliance policies and procedures to protect against costly litigation or defend one of these suits.

Governor Newsom issued a new order closing down certain indoor and outdoor activities as part of an effort to slow the growth in new COVID-19 infections across the state.