HR Specialist: California Employment Law

California employers face more laws – and more chances to get sued – than in other states. Aggressive attorneys don’t stop with federal laws like FMLA, ADA and FLSA: they use state and local living-wage statutes, rural codes, plus discrimination and other laws to sue employers for sky’s-the-limit damages. This California-specific newsletter arrives monthly to help sue-proof every aspect of HR. Written in plain English, it’s your insurance policy for staying in step with current interpretations of state and local laws – and staying out of court. Learn more about HR Specialist: California Employment Law and the free report you’ll get when you subscribe...

A pharmacist formerly employed by Longs Drug Stores recently filed a class-action lawsuit demanding $2.9 billion from CVS Caremark Corp., which purchased Longs in October.

According to Charles Jones, who worked as a pharmacy manager and pharmacist at a San Diego Longs, the store violated wage-reporting laws for its nonexempt employees. Jones filed his suit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California on behalf of “all nonexempt or hourly paid employees who have been employed by defendants in the state of California within one year prior to the filing of this complaint until certification of the class.”

Jones argues that Longs failed to give workers “complete and accurate wage statements,” including the total actual number of hours worked and the complete name, address, and Social Security number of each employee.

Final note: Wage-and-hour suits continue to pile up, and the attorneys representing employees frequently try to turn what may be a small problem into a huge class-action lawsuit.

Employers should regularly review their wage-and-hour policies to make sure they comply with the latest local, state and federal requirements.