FAQs about Holiday Pay in California

With the 4th of July falling this year on a Saturday, we thought this would be a good time to post some information about state and federal holidays, holiday pay and paid time off.

FAQs about Holiday Pay in California

State of California employment law does not require that an employer provide its employees with paid holidays, that it close its business on any holiday, or that employees be given the day off for any particular holiday. If an employer closes its business on holidays and gives its employees time off from work with pay, such a circumstance is treated as a company benefit to the employee.

Additionally, there is nothing in the law that mandates an employer pay an employee a special premium for work performed on a holiday, Saturday, or Sunday, other than the overtime premium required for work performed in excess of eight hours in a workday or 40 hours in a workweek.1

What is the holiday falls on my normal work week Aren’t I entitled to extra pay, of at least time and a half, for working on a holiday?

There is nothing in state law that mandates an employer pay an employee a special premium for work performed on holidays. Unless your employer has a policy or practice of paying a premium rate for working on a holiday, or you are subject to a collective bargaining or employment agreement that contains such a term, your employer is only required to pay you your regular rate of pay for all the straight time hours worked on the holiday, and the overtime premium required for work in excess of eight hours in a workday or 40 hours in a workweek. Since you did not work over eight hours on the holiday, or more than 40 hours during the workweek, you were paid correctly.

My employer is open for business on every holiday, some of which I have to work. Is this against the law?

There is nothing in state law that mandates that an employer must close its business on any particular day, if at all. It is up to your employer to select which days, if any, it chooses to be open and closed for business.

Last week we were closed for business on Monday to celebrate Memorial Day. Consequently, I worked Tuesday through Saturday that week, eight hours each day. When I got my paycheck this week I was paid for 48 hours last week at my straight time rate. Shouldn’t eight of those hours be paid at time and a-half, the overtime rate, since I was paid for more than 40 hours in the workweek?

No, you were paid correctly. In this situation, even though you did not work on the holiday your employer chose to pay you for it, which they have the absolute right and discretion to do. However, the determination of whether overtime pay is due is based upon hours worked, more than eight in a work day, and not upon pay received. Thus, since you did not work more than eight hours in any one workday, or more than 40 hours in the workweek, you are not entitled to any overtime pay for the workweek.

We get 11 holidays off each year without pay. Is my employer breaking the law because he’s not paying us for these holidays when he’s required to, even though we don’t work on any of them?

No, your employer is not breaking the law. There is nothing in state law that mandates that employees be paid for holidays that are not worked.

Cited:
1. http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/faq_holidays.htm

2015 California Employment Laws Part 2: Wage and Hour

Part 2 of a 4-part series on California Wage and Hour Law changes.

Wage and Hour compliance is one of the most challenging areas of HR and one area where having an outsourced HR team of experts can save you a lot of money by lowering risk for workplace compliance. In 2015, many new laws have placed additional obligations on employers and have expanded liability.

Increased Liability for Employers That Contract for Labor:

AB 1897 imposes expanded liability for employers who contract labor.

When employers use contracted labor, such as a staffing agency, the employer can be held liable for wage and hour violations. In other words, if a labor contractor fails on any of these levels: fair pay, providing workers’ compensation, mandatory sick leave to its provided labor  the “client employer” can now be held legally responsible AND liable. For more information, review the Labor Contractor (AB 1897) — Fact Sheet.

Did you know that OmegaComp HR has a fully compliant staffing service? Contact us today for more information.

Rest and Recovery Periods

SB 1360 expands definitions of on-the-clock time for recovery from heat illness as paid breaks and counts towards hours worked. SB 1360 reiterates what is already law and was passed simply to clear up any employer confusion.

Waiting Time Penalties

AB 1723 authorizes for a penalty imposed upon an employer for the willful failure to timely pay wages of an employee who resigns or is discharged, also known as “waiting time”.

AB 2743, provides a waiting time penalty if unionized theatrical and concert venue employers violate any agreed upon time frame for payment of final wages contained in a collective bargaining agreement.

Protections for Complaints Under the Labor Code

AB 2751 clarifies that a $10,000 penalty fined to an employer who discriminates or retaliates against an employee who complains of Labor Code violations will be awarded to the employee or employees who “suffered the violation.”

Timeframe for Recovery of Wages: Liquidated Damages

AB 2074 authorizes an employee to bring a civil lawsuit against his/her employer for the unpaid balance of wages or compensation owed to that employee.

Also permits an employee to recover liquidated damages equal to the unpaid wages plus interest in a court action alleging payment of less than the state minimum wage any time within the statute of limitations.

Child Labor Law Violations: Increased Remedies

AB 2288, the Child Labor Protection Act of 2014, provides additional penalties for violations of California laws regarding employment of minors, including a penalty of $25,000 - $50,000 for “Class A” violations involving minors 12 years of age or younger.

In addition, the statute of limitations for claims that arise from violations of employment laws is extended, until the minor is 18 years of age.

Foreign Labor Contractors

SB 477 Employers are prohibited from using non-registered foreign labor contractors to supply workers in California. SB 477 also imposes disclosure requirements and other obligations on foreign labor contractors. There are penalties for noncompliance and joint liability for employers who use non-registered foreign labor contractors and potential for civil action.

Prevailing Wages

A number of bills signed this year relate to prevailing wages. Employers who provide services or construction work on public works projects for the government or public entities must pay the prevailing wage, which is usually significantly higher than the minimum wage.

The bills include:

§  AB 26; Public Works: defines the term “public works” for purposes of requirements regarding the payment of prevailing wages.

§  AB 1870; Public Works; requires that, except as specified, not less than the general prevailing rate of per diem wages, determined by the Director of Industrial Relations, be paid to workers employed on public works projects with regards to apprenticeship.

§  AB 1939; Public Works; allows a contractor to bring an action against “hiring parties” to recover any increased costs (including labor costs, penalties and legal fees) incurred because of a determination that the work performed on the project was a covered public work and is subject to prevailing wage laws

§  AB 2272; Public Works; defines “public works” to include construction, alteration, demolition, installation, or repair work done under contract and paid for in whole or in part out of public funds.

§  AB 2744; Public Works; imposes a civil penalty on contractors/subs who are determined to have knowingly violated provisions regulating the employment of apprentices on public works projects. The contractor/sub who is determined to have knowingly committed a s violation may additionally be denied the right to bid on or be awarded or perform work and provides for a process to collect the civil penalty.

§  SB 266; Another notable bill, SB 266, responds to concerns regarding delays in determining whether a project is a public works project for prevailing wage purposes

Background Checks

Several new laws relate to criminal background checks.

Criminal History Information in Public Contracts

AB 1650 requires contractors who bid on state contracts involving on-site construction-related services to verify that they will not ask applicants for the on-site construction-related jobs to disclose information concerning criminal history at the time of an initial employment application.

Services to Minors

AB 1852 requires a business that provide specified services to minors, must provide a written notice to the parent or guardian of the minor receiving those services. The written notice should address the business’s policies relating to employee criminal background checks.

http://omegacomp.com/2015-california-employment-laws-part-2-wage-hour/            

2015 California Employment Laws Part 3: Discrimination

Part 3 of a 4-part series on California Wage and Hour Law changes. Discrimination laws in California expand in 2015 to encompass protection against discrimination for drivers license holders who present licenses obtained regardless of being able to submit proof of their residency in the United States, documentation compliance in immigration workers, protection from harassment for unpaid volunteers and interns, and mandatory abusive conduct prevention training. In 2015, many new laws have placed additional obligations on employers and have expanded liability.
Discrimination against employees with undocumented drivers’ license – AB 1660
Existing law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to issue a driver license to otherwise qualified California residents even if they are unable to submit proof that their presence in the United States is authorized under federal law. This bill amends the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”) to make it illegal for an employer to discriminate against individuals because they present a driver’s license obtained under these provisions.
Expansion of “unfair immigration-related practices” and clarification of discrimination – AB 2751
This bill expands the definition of an “unfair immigration-related practice” to include threatening to file or filing a false report or complaint with any state or federal agency. Current law extends the protection only to reports filed with the police. The bill also clarifies that an employer can’t discriminate or retaliate against an employee who updates his or her personal information “based on a lawful change of name, social security number, or federal employment authorization document.”
Discrimination and harassment protection for unpaid interns and volunteers – AB 1443
This bill extends the harassment and discrimination protections of FEHA to unpaid interns, volunteers, and apprenticeship trainees. In addition to being liable to these individuals for conduct by another employee or a supervisor, an employer may be liable for harassment by a nonemployee if the employer knew or should have known of the conduct and failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective action.
Abusive conduct prevention training – AB 2053
Employers with 50 or more employees are required to provide managers with two hours of harassment training (under AB 1825) and additional training on prevention of abusive conduct (under AB 2053) every two years—and within six months for newly hired or promoted managers. Employers subject to the mandatory sexual harassment prevention training requirement for supervisors must now include in the training prevention of “abusive conduct.” Abusive conduct is defined as conduct of an employer or employee in the workplace, with malice, that a reasonable person would find hostile, offensive, and unrelated to an employer’s legitimate business interests.
Read more: http://www.omegacomp.com/2015-california-employment-laws-part-3-discrimination/

The REAL cost of "Free" Payroll

Should you jump on the free online payroll bandwagon?

There are a lot of promises being thrown around that you can have it all for free by some fast-moving companies trying to take over the benefits/payroll/human resource servicing world. How do you know if this is the right move for your business? They are cheaper in many ways. That’s true. But is that the only thing worth considering? Cost control is very important, and for some, this might be just what they need to grow their business. But for most businesses, there’s more to consider than just finding the cheapest solution to payroll, HR, and benefits.

1.       Know the online broker business model. It's quantity, not quality. Their business is based on volume. They make money by taking in a large volume of low-paying clients, use more automation than people, and are not focused on quality of service.

2.      Read the fine print! Not all services are completely free. There are hidden costs in all that sizzle, “if you buy this-sign up online and everything else is free.” Look closely for the disclaimers. Decide if you want to be hit with a cost later that wasn't thoroughly explained up front. Having a personal relationship with your broker means they walk you through everything you need to know, in-person so you are informed at the time of signing up.

3.      Know the benefit limits. Being hurt or having an employee with a catastrophic illness or injury is not the time to find out how limited your coverage actually is. Many of the big companies aren't focused on you and your needs. They are focused on making sales, period. You can hedge your bets that you won’t (hopefully) have to go through navigating an injury and worse, an audit from OSHA. But if you do, who do you want working with you? Someone who has never heard of you or someone with whom you've been working with on a personal level that understands your business needs and will fight for you if needed against a governing agency?

4.      Start-ups are risky. We've seen them fail before. Don’t be taken in by the hype. Remember, their hook is catering to one aspect of your benefits, payroll, and HR needs-the cost-and they are running on start up money, not profits. It takes profits to stay in business and if their start up money runs out or the broker commission model changes, there goes their longevity-and your benefits. What happens then?

5.      If it sounds too good to be true, it could be. They can offer a lot of free services when they’re running on start up investment money because someone else is paying for it. What happens when that money runs out? Do they fold up, take their profits and slink away? It’s happened before. Will your service fees go up, you can plan on it. They already have you hooked by then. What happens to you and your business? Where will you be? It’s worth thinking about before you make that jump based on one aspect.

6.      You can be talked about by Forbes and still not be a good deal for consumers. If all you're hearing is bragging about how big they are and how fast they're moving, they're not focusing on the right thing: the service they provide customers and the quality of those services. That's the real story.

Moving your administrative services over is a big decision. There’s more to consider than just the monthly price.  If you decide to move to a big box company, remember the potential impact it will have not just to your business but the overall economy as well. This point is really worth stopping and looking at. Do we really need more big businesses shutting down little ones?

They are hunting in the small to medium business benefits backyard and running their business off. This will eventually put a lot of people out of work and reduce options and services. And in doing so, this will concentrate the types of services and options that are out there to only the big players. Do we really need more big businesses running the show?

It pays to do your homework and a little forecasting on the impact. It could work out well for your or you could be left in high and dry without the robust options you have now because so many payroll/HR/benefits companies went under while everyone chased after a business model that wasn't sustainable.

http://omegacomp.com/the-real-cost-of-free-payroll/

Link: related article The 5 Flaws to a Zenefits Approach

2015 California Employment Laws Part I: Workplace Safety

Changes to California Employment Laws for 2015 Part I: Workplace Safety

In November, 2014 the California Chamber of Commerce released a list of new laws affecting employers beginning in 2015. This is the beginning aof a series on those workplace law changes and the effects on business.

Penalties for Failure to Abate Safety Hazards

Cal/OSHA can require an employer to abate (fix) serious workplace safety violations and also to issue civil penalties.

An employer can appeal the citation.

AB 1634, in effect, prohibits the state Occupational Safety and Health Appeals Board from modifying civil penalties for abatement or credit for abatement unless the employer has fixed the violation.

In cases of serious, repeat serious or willful serious violations, AB 1634 will generally prohibit a stay or suspension of an abatement requirement while an appeal or petition for reconsideration is pending, unless the employer can demonstrate that a stay or suspension will not adversely affect the health and safety of employees.

Email for Workplace Safety Reports

AB 326 allows employers to email their reports of a work-related serious injury, illness or death to the Division of Occupational Safety and Health. Previously, the Labor Code required an immediate report by telephone or telegraph. The reference to telegraph is removed and replaced with email.

Workplace Violence Prevention Plans: Hospitals

SB 1299 requires Cal/OSHA to adopt standards by January 1, 2016, that require specified types of hospitals, including general acute care hospitals or acute psychiatric hospitals, to adopt workplace violence prevention plans as part of the hospitals’ injury and illness prevention plans. The intent is to protect health care workers and other facility personnel from aggressive and violent behavior.

The bill would require the division, by January 1, 2017, and annually thereafter, to post a report on its Internet Web site containing specified information regarding violent incidents at hospitals. The bill would exempt certain state-operated hospitals from these provisions.
Because this bill would expand the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

http://omegacomp.com/changes-california-employment-laws-2015-part-workplace-safety/

Workplace Conflict Resolution

Avoid These Actions in Effective Conflict Resolution

By Susan M. Heathfield
Human Resources Expert

Organization leaders are responsible for creating a work environment that enables people to thrive. If turf wars, disagreements and differences of opinion escalate into interpersonal conflict, you must intervene immediately. Not intervening is not an option if you value your organization and your positive culture. In conflict-ridden situations, your mediation skill and interventions are critical.

Actions to Avoid in Conflict Resolution

Do not avoid the conflict, hoping it will go away. Trust me. It won't. Even if the conflict appears to have been superficially put to rest, it will rear its ugly head whenever stress increases or a new disagreement occurs. An unresolved conflict or interpersonal disagreement festers just under the surface in your work environment. It burbles to the surface whenever enabled, and always at the worst possible moment. This, too, shall pass, is not an option - ever.

Do not meet separately with people in conflict. If you allow each individual to tell their story to you, you risk polarizing their positions. The person in conflict has a vested interest in making himself or herself “right” if you place yourself in the position of judge and jury. The sole goal of the employee, in this situation, is to convince you of the merits of their case.

Do not believe, for even a moment, the only people who are affected by the conflict are the participants. Everyone in your office and every employee with whom the conflicting employees interact, is affected by the stress. People feel as if they are walking on egg shells in the presence of the antagonists. This contributes to the creation of a hostile work environment for other employees. In worst case scenarios, your organization members take sides and your organization is divided.

How to Mediate and Resolve Conflict

These are the steps you'll want to take to help employees resolve conflicts in your workplace.

Meet with the antagonists together. Let each briefly summarize their point of view, without comment or interruption by the other party. This should be a short discussion so that all parties are clear about the disagreement and conflicting views. Intervene if either employee attacks the other employee. This is not acceptable.

Ask each participant to describe specific actions they’d like to see the other party take that would resolve the differences. Three or four suggestions work well. An example is, “I’d like Mary to send the report to me by Thursday at 1 p.m. so I can complete my assignment by my due date of Friday at noon.” A second example is, “I would like to have responsibility for all of the business development and follow-up with that client. The way the work is divided now causes Tom and I to never know what the other person is doing.”

Sometimes, as in the second example above, you, as the supervisor, must own some of the responsibility for helping the employees resolve their conflict. Always ask, “What about the work situation is causing these staff members to fail?”

 If the situation needs further exploration, use a process I've adapted from Stephen Covey in which you ask each participant to additionally identify what the other employee can do more of, less of, stop and start.

 All participants discuss and commit to making the changes necessary to resolve the conflict. Commit to noticing that the other person has made a change, no matter how small. Commit to treating each other with dignity and respect. It is okay to have reasonable disagreements over issues and plans; it is never okay to have personality conflicts that affect the workplace.

Let the antagonists know that you will not choose sides. It is impossible for a person external to the conflict to know the truth of the matter. You expect the individuals to resolve the conflicts proactively as adults. If they are unwilling to do so, you will be forced to take disciplinary action that can lead to dismissal for both parties.

Finally, assure both parties that you have every faith in their ability to resolve their differences and get on with their successful contributions within your shared organization. Set a time to review progress.

Mediating a conflict is challenging, but as a manager or supervisor, the role of mediator comes with your territory. Your willingness to appropriately intervene sets the stage for your own success. You craft a work environment that enables the success of the people who work there. I believe you can learn to do it. Conflict mediation is an example of “practice makes perfect.”

 This article is reprinted from about.com, About Money http://humanresources.about.com/od/managementtips/a/conflict_solue.htm

http://omegacomp.com/workplace-conflict-resolution/

California Wage Garnishment Laws

California Garnishment Law and Exemptions

The California [wage] garnishment law is complex. Any specific questions regarding California garnishment exemptions, or other areas of garnishment law in California should be directed to a California wage garnishment attorney.

However, under California law, the following types of income [types] are usually not subject to wage garnishment:

~Public and private retirement benefits (such as IRAs and 401Ks)

~Most forms of public assistance, including unemployment and workers’ compensation benefits, county assistance, student financial aid, and union benefits

~ Insurance benefits, including payments received from life and homeowners insurance policies

~Under federal law, Social Security benefits are exempt from garnishment (except in cases of debts owed to the federal government, such as delinquent taxes, and garnishments for overdue child support)

California Garnishment Limits

California does not provide its own law in terms of the maximum amount of earnings that can be subject to garnishment – therefore the federal rule applies. Under federal law, the maximum amount of an employee’s earnings that is subject to garnishment is the calculated as the lesser of the following:

~ 25% of the debtor’s disposable income (disposable income is defined as what’s left after federally-required deductions, such as income taxes)

~ The amount by which the garnishee’s weekly incomes exceeds 30 times the federal minimum wage

Note that larger amounts are allowed for debts related to taxes or child support. The amounts exempt from garnishment in these cases varies by state law, as well as by other circumstances.

California Garnishment Statute of Limitations

In most cases, a creditor must bring a lawsuit against the debtor within four years of the debt occurring. Note that this doesn’t mean that the garnishment must take place within four years, just that the lawsuit resulting in the garnishment order must have been filed within that time.

Once the judgment allowing the garnishment has been issued, the creditor can continue to garnish wages for up to 10 years (or until the debt has been paid in full.)

Article Excerpt from Garnishment Laws, GarnishmentLaws.org

http://omegacomp.com/california-wage-garnishment-laws/

Automated Payroll and Timekeeping Systems - Is It Worth the Cost?

Are you shocked when you see how much your payroll is costing you? Payroll is typically an employer's number one expense. Wasted money in payroll is one of the biggest obstacles facing an employer who is poised for growth.

An employer can’t be everywhere, all the time. Monitoring employee hours can be easily automated and is modestly priced as most systems are typically scalable, after the initial equipment purchase and set up, you pay per user of the system on a monthly billable basis.

The system cost is often offset by savings due to increased accuracy. Payroll errors are costly in many ways. For example, an employee who is “fudging” their time card by even a few minutes does more than cost the employer more money in direct pay, it also affects the amount of accrual time that qualifies an employee for benefits.

 Did you know that just 15 employees clocking in an additional 4 minutes a day can add up to 1380 minutes (23) hours of additional pay per month!

Automated payroll systems can offer an employer many advantages:

§  Enforce good employee habits. Have a policy and be prepared to enforce it with employees clock in and out at their required start, break, lunch and clock out times-eliminating those overages because even a few minutes over the course of a year can add up to hundreds of dollars.

§  Use a mobile system for remote employees to log their location through GPS. This allows an employer to see if the employee is actually at the location they claim to be. Not only does this eliminate the employee deceiving their supervisor about being on a job site, it also alleviates the employer responsibility should anything happen accidentally to that employee when they should not have been on the clock.

§  Lock employees out of the timeclock for non-clock times. Automated timekeeping often has the capability of locking out punch in and out times for employers who need to lock down early punch in and late punch out.

§  Biometric technology can use hand print, fingerprint and retina recognition software to verify an employee is actually onsite. This prevents the dreaded “buddy punching” system.

Often times, an employer will need to use a combination of these systems to bring their payroll into compliance. Timekeeping can do more than just keep their employee hours accurate. With a compatible payroll enterprise system, employers can enjoy having a team of outsourced experts process their payroll. Payroll agencies will file all taxes, pay insurance premiums and deductions, and contribute to employee-chosen investments and optional health care coverage, as well as managing garnishments. It’s well-worth an employer’s time to check in to these options, and shop around. Some agencies offer free payroll processing in exchange for purchase of other services. Some agencies offer deep discounts on their payroll if an employer bundles HR, Workers’ Comp, Benefits Administration, or Risk and Safety Management.  For more information on these with OmegaComp HR, contact one of our Business Consultants today.  Call  toll free: 888-540-0752 or email omega@omegacomp.com

http://omegacomp.com/outsourced-payroll-timekeeping-worth-cost/

When Does it Make Sense to Outsource Payroll and HR?

Most business owners know they are more effective spending time on the core mission than being bogged down in administrative tasks. Outsourcing payroll and HR can cut the ball and chain that slows so many business owners down. When does it make sense to outsource payroll and HR?

Keeping staff tied up figuring out the the complex issues of payroll and workplace compliance, staying on top of the ever-shifting sands of tax and benefit deductions, not too mention keeping up with software updates and training are hidden costs that many business owners don’t think about as part of an in-house payroll & HR.

Payroll is one of the biggest costs for an employer. It’s not just the direct cost, it’s the hidden costs that really add up. From running down bookkeeping and payroll errors, garnishment paperwork, tracking paid time off and benefits accrual.

HR and workplace compliance is a cumbersome and complex undertaking. Keeping from one to a small band of employees dedicated to doing just these core functions is time and payroll consuming. In-house HR managers are proven to be much more revenue positive when they can concentrate on core business vision such as strategic planning, team building, direction monitoring and workplace enhancements and business improvements. Outsourcing can give even small businesses a full department of experts and documentation to rely on without the direct cost of multiple, specialized employees.

Outsourcing can solve some of the following headaches:
• Increased compliance with workplace and tax laws
• Accurate bookkeeping with less chance for error
• Enhanced security-many outsource solutions have bigger pockets than small businesses and can house sensitive data with higher levels of data security than a small business can afford.
http://omegacomp.com/when-to-outsource-payroll-and-hr