FELS Newsletter: August 2024
FELS is on the Road!
Nov. 21 & 22, California Farm Labor Contractors Association Ag Labor Forum, Embassy Suites, 333 Madonna Road, San Luis Obispo; for more information and to register, visit https://calflca.org/ALF24. FELS COO Bryan Little will discuss “Compliance Strategies for Cal/OSHA’s Indoor Heat Standard,” 9:45 to 10:45 AM, Friday, Nov. 22.
California Supreme Court Says Even a Single Slur by a Coworker Can Give Rise to Employer Liability for Hostile Work Environment and Retaliation
The California Supreme Court in Bailey v. San Francisco District Attorney’s Office (S265223, July 29, 2024) clarified the circumstances under which a single racial slur by a coworker can lead to employer liability and further expounded on the type of conduct that can constitute an adverse employment action giving rise to a claim of retaliation. […]
OSHA Opines on When Motor Vehicle Injuries are Work-Related
In a recent standard interpretation dated June 12, 2024, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration clarified the circumstances when a motor vehicle injury and fatality would be considered work-related. In doing so, OSHA restated the general principle that injuries that occur when an employee is on travel status are work-related, if, at the time […]
Removing Newly Separated Employees from Employer-Provided Housing
FELS’ Sacramento office often receives calls from agricultural employers seeking to resolve a thorny problem: How to remove from employer-provided housing someone whose employment has ended? Employers providing housing to employees usually want them to vacate it promptly when employment ends. A written agreement can establish and document this requirement. In fact, all terms of […]
FELS Furnishes Ag Employer Resources
FELS’ new website features compliance resources for California agricultural employers:
CDC Allocates $10 Million for Flu Vaccines for Livestock Employees
U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced July 31 it will spend $10 million in federal funds for avian flu response among livestock employees. In the announcement, CDC cited nine cases of avian influenza (H5N1) in Colorado (no infected dairy herds or poultry flocks have been reported in California), with symptoms described as mild, primarily conjunctivitis […]
Preliminary Injunction Issued in Wonderful Nurseries/UFW Case
Kern County Superior Court on July 18 issued a preliminary injunction enjoining the Agricultural Labor Relations Board from enforcing its certification of the United Farm Workers as the collective bargaining agent of employees of Wonderful Nurseries, LLC, issued by the ALRB in March. A spokesperson for UFW has indicated it expects the injunction will be […]
