Insights

In the wake of the COVID-19 virus, employers of all sizes are facing difficult decisions that need to be made without delay. To this end, we will be providing a series of alerts over the next few days to help employers navigate workplace issues posed by the virus. To assist in answering the question, “What should we be doing right now,” below is a checklist of suggestions for employers to consider.

This month's key cases involve payment of wages, res judicata, and gender discrimination.

In April 2018, the Ninth Circuit held that employers cannot consider pre-employment salary history, even in combination with other factors, to justify gender pay disparities. See Rizo v. Yovino, 887 F.3d 453 (9th Cir. 2018) (en banc). Why is the Ninth Circuit deciding this case again? The author of the majority opinion, Judge Stephen Reinhardt, unfortunately died before the previous opinion was issued, and since his vote made a difference to the outcome of the case, the Supreme Court ordered the decision vacated. See Yovino v. Rizo, 139 S. Ct. 706 (2019).

Construction companies have a unique opportunity to avoid the application of the restrictive new independent contractors' law that took effect this year. This article provides a checklist that will help construction companies determine whether their relationships with subcontractors qualify for this exemption.