Total Articles: 13
California Court of Appeal Finds Employees Are Exempt Under California's Commissioned Sales Exemption
On January 24, 2012, the California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, issued an important decision providing new and needed guidance on the commissioned sales exemption. In Muldrow v. Surrex Solutions Corporation, the court concluded that a class of “senior consulting service managers” was exempt from overtime pay requirements.
California Supreme Court Applies Administrative Exemption to Claims Adjusters
In the waning days of 2011, a unanimous California Supreme Court gave California employers a holiday present in its long-awaited opinion that diminishes the importance of the outmoded analytical tool known as "the administrative/production worker dichotomy" for determining whether employees are properly classified as exempt "administrative" employees for the purposes of wage and hour law. In its decision in Harris v. Superior Court (Liberty Mutual), the court re-establishes the necessity of analyzing all aspects of the administrative exemption and emphasizes the relevance of federal law in interpreting the exemption. As a result, the decision could help California employers relying upon the administrative exemption.
With Its Decision in Harris, the California Supreme Court Breathes Life into the Administrative Exemption
Executive Summary: In Harris v. Superior Court, California's Supreme Court recently clarified the scope of the administrative exemption under the California Labor Code, potentially opening the door for more employees to be classified as exempt.
California Supreme Court Punts on Whether Claims Adjusters Might be Exempt
Sidestepping its first opportunity to address California’s overtime exemption for administrative employees, the state Supreme Court has ruled that although the court of appeal misapplied the “administrative/production worker dichotomy,” the case should be remanded for analysis under the applicable Industrial Welfare Commission wage order. In Harris v. Superior Court (Liberty Mutual), No. S156555 (Dec. 29, 2011), the unanimous Court reversed a determination that insurance adjusters were non-exempt production workers because “the Court of Appeal misapplied the substantive law.”
California Supreme Court Finds the "Administrative/ Production Worker Dichotomy" Not Dispositive in Determining Insurance Claims Adjusters Exempt
In a long-awaited decision, the California Supreme Court unanimously gave California employers a holiday present in an opinion that follows the majority of federal courts in finding that insurance claims adjusters are exempt administrative employees.
[CA] State High Court Clarifies Administrative Employee Exemption
On December 29, 2011, the California Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in a case involving the application of the “administrative/production dichotomy” in determining if an employee meets the requirements for the administrative employee exemption from overtime under the California Wage Orders.
Minimum Salary Requirement Increases for California Computer Professional Exemption Announced
The required compensation levels for employees exempt from overtime under the California computer professional exemption will increase by 2.5 percent from the current levels beginning January 1, 2012, the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) has announced.
California - New Wage Rates Announced for Computer Exemption
Under Labor Code Section 515.5, some computer software employees are considered exempt if they meet certain duties and compensation criteria. The compensation rate is supposed to vary with the rate of inflation.
Wage and Hour Update: Staffing Company Misapplies Administrative Exemption To Account Execs.
When an employer classifies a group of employees as exempt under state and federal wage and hour law, that decision is subject to challenge by the employees or a government agency. The wrong decision can result in expensive litigation and huge liability. In a recent California case titled Peligrino v. Robert Half International, a California appellate court ruled that the employer had misclassified its account executives under the administrative exemption. The court also invalidated an employee agreement reducing the statute of limitations (time to sue) to six months.
DLSE Issues Guidance On Deductions.
On November 28, 2009, the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) issued an opinion letter which should help shed some light on an area of the law which has long plagued California employers due to its ambiguity -- namely, under what circumstances may employers make deductions from exempt employees' salaries without running afoul of the law?
Start Me Up: New Case holds Start-Up Company Employee Qualifies for Administrative Exemption.
In California, unless specifically exempted, an employee is presumed to be non-exempt and subject to the provisions of the applicable Wage Order. Perhaps the most frequently mentioned exemptions are the "white collar" exemptions involving executive, professional, and administrative occupations. A white-collar exemption exempts an employee from entitlements under many sections of the Wage Order, including meal & rest periods, recordkeeping, and the minimum wage and overtime provisions.
Insurance Adjusters Held Not Exempt from California Wage Orders (scroll down).
In Harris v. Superior Court, a divided California Court of Appeal panel held that insurance adjusters are not exempt from employees under the administrative exemption to Californias wage orders because their work does not rise to the level of management policy or general operations despite the majoritys acknowledgment of no less than eight contrary rulings by federal courts applying identical regulatory language to insurance claims adjusters and contrary determinations by the U.S. Department of Labor in interpreting its own regulations.
"Exempt" Status Under California Law: Avoid the Pitfalls.
It's been difficult for California employers to determine who is and who isn't exempt from overtime and minimum wage requirements; this article helps you sort it all out.
