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What I’ve Been Reading This Week


I think I probably spent more time in airports on layovers this week than I did in my actual office.  Unfortunately, that is sometimes what happens when trials and mediations are set rather far apart, a few days in a row.  While that left me little time to comb through articles this week, I think the two articles I highlighted below are well worth a read.

As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week.


A Primer On Statewide & Local Paid Sick Leave Laws in California

For those employers and employees in California (or those simply looking for a bit of information on the laws in the state), I refer you to this primer which provides a concise overview of the statewide and local paid sick leave laws.  This PDF chart includes information on which employees are covered, how much paid leave is provided for, how the leave can be accrued, whether the leave rolls over, etc., etc.  Even for those that have a good handle on these paid sick leave laws, it would not hurt to give this chart a review.


Effort Made to Rescind Waterloo's Ban the Box Measure

Earlier this week, City Councilwoman Margaret Klein moved to rescind a ban the box measure in Waterloo, Iowa.  The ban the box measure, approved by a 4 - 3 City Council vote back in November is set to take effect July 1, 2020.  The ban the box measure, the first of its kind in Iowa, prohibits city and private employers from asking about an applicant's criminal record until later in the hiring process.  Notably, a lawsuit had previously been filed to prevent enforcement of the ban the box measure on the grounds that it violated a 2017 Iowa law that prohibited cities from adopting ordinances that "exceed or conflict with the requirements of federal or state law...relating to hiring practices."  It is expected this challenge will be heard by the City Council shortly and would certainly be a development to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.

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What I’ve Been Reading This Week

A few years ago, I remember when the “Fight for $15” movement was taking off around the country.  Lo and behold, it appears that a $15/hour minimum wage is not the stopping point, which should be no surprise.  As the below article notes, New York is aggressively moving to ramp up hourly wage rates even higher.  While all the  below articles are worth a read, I called particular attention to that one. As always, below are a couple article that caught my eye this week. Disney World Workers Reject Latest Contract Offer Late last week, it was announced that workers at Disney World had rejected the most recent contract offer from the company, calling on their employer to do better.  As Brooks Barnes at The New York Times writes, the unions that represent about 32,000 workers at Disney World reported their members resoundingly rejected the 5 year contract offer which would have seen workers receive a 10% raise and retroactive increased back pay.  While Disney’s offer would have increased pa