California Employment Attorney Blog

The U.S. Department of Labor has launched a campaign, "We Can Help," to encourage workers in certain industries, including construction, janitorial work, hotel/motel services, food services, and home health care, to notify the agency of suspected wage and hour law violations. The agency is relying on tips from worker advocacy groups, and has hired more than 250 additional investigators, a 33% increase, in an effort to increase pressure on employers. The effort is spearheaded by the agency's Wage and Hour division. The agency is also rolling out a publicity campaign that includes a new web site, an (800) number, and bilingual public-service announcements in Spanish and English. The ads feature activists like Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers of America, and actor Jimmy Smits. In addition, the agency and other groups, such as the AFL-CIO, will distribute posters, fact sheets, and booklets on how to report complaints.

California employers are already facing an overwhelming amount of class action wage hour lawsuits. A Los Angeles Superior Court Judge tasked with handling complex class actions recently estimated that of the 790 class action lawsuits filed in California in 2009, 2/3 to 3/4 involved wage and hour claims.

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The U.S. Supreme Court, in 14 Penn Plaza LLC et al. v. Pyett et al., a decision issued last week, held that a union and an employer can agree that employee discrimination claims will be submitted to arbitration only, and will not be filed in court. The Court overruled its 1974 decision that had long been relied upon by employment lawyers for the proposition that unions could not negotiate away an employee's right to sue in court for discrimination.

"As in any contractual negotiation, a union may agree to the inclusion of an arbitration provision in a collective-bargaining agreement in return for other concessions from the employer," the Court concluded. "Courts generally may not interfere in this bargained-for exchange."

The court's opinion involves federal anti-discrimination law, and thus is relevant to any California employer with a unionized workforce.

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