California Workplace & Employment Law Blog

Federal law requires that every employer who hires an individual for employment in the United States must complete Form I-9, which is used to verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired to work in the United States. The United States Department of Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released a revised version of Form I-9 on July 17, 2017, which employers must begin using starting September 18, 2017.

California employers with five or more employees have an affirmative legal duty to provide reasonable accommodation to their employees with physical or mental disabilities unless doing so would cause undue hardship. This duty requires the employer to engage in an “interactive process,” which is the means by which a reasonable accommodation is selected. Not knowing when to initiate the interactive process is one of the biggest missteps that employers can make, which may lead to costly disability discrimination lawsuits down the line.

The California Labor Code allows employers to choose the beginning and end times of the “workday” and “workweek” as long as the “workday” covers a consecutive 24-hour period commencing at the same time each calendar day, and the “workweek” covers any seven consecutive days starting with the same calendar day each week.  This is important because once defined, the employer’s “workday” and “workweek” become the benchmarks by which overtime pay is determined.