How Should Employers Respond to Workplace Harassment Claims
A harassment complaint just landed on your desk. What you do in the next 24 hours will become part of the legal record. Under California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act, courts and the Civil Rights Department evaluate not just what was alleged but how you responded. The California Civil Rights Department published its 2025 Harassment […]
How to Terminate an Employee in California
California’s at-will employment doctrine gives employers broad authority to end an employment relationship. It does not make termination risk-free. California is one of the most employee-protective states in the country. The decisions made in the weeks before a termination, during the conversation itself, and in the hours immediately after determine an employer’s legal exposure for […]
How to Respond to an EEOC Charge in California
A Notice of Charge of Discrimination just arrived. The clock started the moment you received it. In California, that clock may have started on two investigations simultaneously. Under the formal work-sharing agreement between the EEOC and California’s Civil Rights Department, a charge filed with one agency is typically cross-filed with the other automatically. An EEOC […]
How to Respond to an Employee Lawsuit in California
A process server just left a summons at your office. Or an envelope from the California Civil Rights Department has been sitting on your desk for four days. Or a plaintiff’s attorney sent a demand letter with a settlement number in it. Whatever arrived, the clock started. The actions you take in the next 48 […]
California Minimum Wage 2026: A Complete Guide for Employers
Effective January 1, 2026, California’s state minimum wage is $16.90 per hour for all employers, under Labor Code section 1182.12. That figure is a floor, not the final answer for most California employers. Depending on where your employees work, what industry you operate in, and how your workforce is composed, the rate you are legally […]
How to Respond to a PAGA Notice in California
A PAGA notice is not a lawsuit. It is a pre-lawsuit administrative filing sent by certified mail to both the employer and the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency before a civil action can be filed. But the moment the LWDA received that document, a 65-day clock started. And depending on your company size, a […]