David Kadue Quoted in Law360
"7 Calif. Laws That Catch Employers Off Guard"

Seyfarth Shaw Los Angeles partner David Kadue was quoted in Law360 on July 5 in an article that discussed some of the more uncommon labor and employment laws specific to the state of California.

David noted that meal and rest breaks, in addition to daily overtime, are "huge sources of liability," pointing out that aside from California, few states including Alaska and Nevada have daily overtime requirements.

Suitable seating for workers is another issue in which "no one paid much attention to…until recently," David said. "There's a whole new slew of lawsuits against retailers now on that point."

According to David, in reference to the state's stance on no-hire provisions and non-solicitation agreements, "the general rule is that these covenants are enforceable only to the extent necessary to protect trade secrets."

The unique statute, The Private Attorney General Act of 2004 (PAGA), allows private citizens to pursue civil penalties for labor code violations. David noted that the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency "almost never steps in to take action" when a PAGA plaintiff notifies the agency in order to give it a chance to investigate before filing a suit.

The last policy that David commented on was the absence of a "use or lose" policy with regard to all paid wages, including accrued vacation. California Labor Code Section 201 stipulates that an employer must pay within 72 hours all wages owed if the worker quits. If the company discharges the worker, all owed wages must be paid immediately.

"What that often means is that employers have to manually write a check, applying to earned wages and accrued vacation times," David pointed out, and this isn't usually done in a timely manner. Accrued vacation is the "same as cash and has to be paid at the current wage rate. You can't have 'use it or lose it' policies in California," he concluded.