Seismic Shifts in California Employment Law—Avoid the Legal Earthquake
California continues to be the epicenter for groundbreaking laws that provide additional obligations for employers. This session will provide an update on the latest employment law developments from the Golden State, including legislation that allows employees to take protected family and medical leave for designated persons, establishes mandatory unpaid bereavement leave, creates a new state of emergency leave with protections against retaliation, prohibits employers from discriminating against individuals based on their off-duty marijuana use, and implements new pay transparency requirements for employers. In addition to reviewing new legislation and recent case law, the speakers will provide tips for updating your policies and practices in response to these developments.
Learning Objectives:
- Educate employers on how California's employment laws are different from the rest of the country.
- Discuss the latest legal developments in California and how to avoid or minimize liability.
- Given that trends frequently begin in California, even employers without a presence in the state will benefit from attending this session.
Christopher W. Olmsted
Christopher leads a group of compliance attorneys in the San Diego office. He also serves as a member of Ogletree Deakins’ California Advice Group, a network of California attorneys who lend expertise to the clients of Ogletree Deakins’ attorneys in our offices across the nation. He has served as an instructor at Cal State University San Marcos, teaching a course titled “Legal Issues for HR Professionals” as part of the Human Resource Management Certificate Program. He is frequently an invited speaker for various industry groups, and regularly publishes employment law articles.
Christopher has 25 years of experience litigating employment law claims. During that time he has helped clients respond to just about every type of employment-related lawsuit that can be filed in California (and seriously, in California it’s a long list!). He works with a team of talented defense attorneys in the firm’s San Diego office, as well as the firm’s other offices throughout the state.
His litigation experience includes: California FEHA and Title VII discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims; wrongful termination claims; wage and hour litigation (claims for overtime, unpaid wages, meal and rest breaks, and the like); claims involving California CFRA, federal FMLA, and other leaves of absences; misappropriation of trade secrets, non-competition, and non-disclosure agreements; California and federal ADA accommodation; independent contractor misclassification claims; Labor Commissioner claims (Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Labor Standards Enforcement claims), U.S. Department of Labor claims, EEOC and California Department of Fair Employment and Housing claims; EDD and Unemployment Insurance claims.
Christopher has represented clients in state and federal trials, arbitration proceedings, and administrative law hearings. Christopher also has experience representing clients on appeals before California state and federal courts of appeal.