2017 Employment Law Guide for CCBA Members

Laurie NavasNo CommentsMembers Only

California employment law is difficult to navigate and the new year brings new laws that apply to your business. Regulations in effect as of 1/1/2017  include:

  •  Increased minimum wage/local minimum wage ordinances
    • The minimum wage is now $10.50 per hour for employers with 26 or more employees (employers with less than 26 employees must comply by January 1, 2018. Until then, minimum wage remains $10.00 per hour for those employers).  This also affects the minimum salary that must be paid to ensure that workers are properly classified as exempt from the requirement to pay overtime.  Additionally, many municipalities have their own minimum wage laws.  If members are operating in these counties/cities, then they must pay the increased minimum wage to work done there.  For example, the minimum wage in Berkeley is now $12.53, it is $11.50 in San Diego, and $12.25 in Emeryville for employers with 55 employees or fewer.
  • Legalization of marijuana
    • Employers can still require applicants to take a post-offer drug test and can test employees that they reasonably believe are impaired at work (and reject applicants or terminate employees that fail the test), but their policies must be changed to make it clear that Schedule 1 drugs under federal law are prohibited (because now only federal law clearly prohibits marijuana use).
  • Discrimination/Retaliation/Harassment Prevent Policy
    • Employers must have a Discrimination/Retaliation/Harassment Prevent Policy that is in writing, lists all of the current protected categories under California law, indicates that the law prohibits coworkers and third parties, as well as supervisors and managers, from engaging in prohibited conduct, and creates a complaint process that ensures confidentiality (to the extent possible),a timely response and investigation, documentation, appropriate options for remedial actions and resolutions, and provides for a timely closure.

CCBA allied trade member, Carothers DiSante & Freudenberger LLP, developed The 2017 Employment Law Guide for California Businesses as a courtesy to the California Craft Brewers Association. You can review the document online here.

Many CCBA allied trade members provide consulting and legal advice to asses how these complex laws apply to your brewery and to help you adopt appropriate policies. Please view a full list of allied trade member attorneys on our website here and employment law firms listed below.

  • Carle, Mackie, Power & Ross LLP – Jeremy Little  –  PHONE: 707-526-4200  –  EMAIL: jlittle@cmprlaw.com
  • Dickenson, Peatman & Fogarty – Bahaneh Hobel  –  PHONE: 707-225-1052  –  EMAIL: bhobel@dpf-law.com
  • Wendel Rosen Black & Dean LLP – Eugene Pak  –  PHONE: 510.834-6600  –  EMAIL: EPak@wendel.com
  • Fisher & Phillips LLP – Amy Lessa  –  PHONE: 858-597-9612  –  EMAIL: alessa@laborlawyers.com
  • Spaulding McCullough & Tansil LLP  – Don Winkle  –  PHONE: 707-524-1900  –  EMAIL: winkle@smlaw.com
  • Buynak, Fauver, Archbald & Spray – Michael Fauver  –  PHONE: (805) 966-7000  –  EMAIL: mfauver@bfslaw.com
  • Murphy, Campbell, Alliston & Quinn – Suzanne Nicholson  –  PHONE: 916-400-2300  –  EMAIL: snicholson@murphycampbell.com
  • Craft Beer Attorney – Candace L. Moon, Esq.  –  PHONE: 619-749-4115  –  EMAIL: info@craftbeerattorney.com
  • Coblentz, Patch, Duffy and Bass – Karen Frank  –  PHONE: 415-772-5739  –  EMAIL: kfrank@coblentzlw.com