HR Watchdog

USCIS Update on I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification Form Set to Expire June 30, 2009

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that the Employment Eligibility Verification form I-9 (Rev. 02/02/09) currently on the USCIS Web site will continue to be valid for use beyond June 30, 2009.

USCIS has requested that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approve the continued use of the current version of Form I-9. While this request is pending, the Form I-9 (Rev. 02/02/09) will not expire.

USCIS will update Form I-9 when the extension is approved.   Employers will be able to use either the Form I-9 with the new revision date or the Form I-9 with the 02/02/09 revision date at the bottom of the form.

For more information on USCIS and its programs, visit www.uscis.gov.

You can get the I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification form in English and the I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification form in Spanish on HRCalifornia.com as well.

Discrimination is colorblind

The U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion today stating that a test that determines who will get promoted is not valid if it negatively impacts a particularl group - in this case, white firefighters.

Many may refer to this as "reverse discrimination" but it is important to remember, especially in California, that all of us are in a protected class and if our class is given preferential treatment or is a victim of bias, we are protected. There is no such thing as "reverse discrimination" just discrimination. Your employment practices should:

• Ensure comparable treatment of similarly situated employees.
• If you require testing for hire or promotion, it should not have a disparate impact on any group - if it does you need to reevaluate your testing.
• Don't assume that one group has greater or lesser rights than the next. In this case white firefighters were negatively impacted when the testing stopped. The Supreme Court verified that this is not okay either. 

This entire case will be covered in the July 9, 2009 HR California Extra, if you do not subscribe already to this free newsletter, sign up now!

Are you sitting down?

California wage orders require the following:
(A) All working employees shall be provided with suitable seats when the nature of the work reasonably permits the use of seats.
(B) When employees are not engaged in the active duties of their employment and the nature of the work requires standing, an adequate number of suitable seats shall be placed in reasonable proximity to the work area and employees shall be permitted to use such seats when it does not interfere with the performance of their duties.

Three known current class actions include this as a violation - a costly mistake that will add up for some employers. Make sure you have appropriate legal guidance on this provision!

Employers are required to post a copy of the wage order that applies to their business in a location where employees will see it. If you don't know what wage order applies to you, CalChamber members can use the Wage Order Wizard.

Taxpayer Withholding Changes

The California Franchise Tax Board has announced changes to personal income tax rates and exemption credits for 2009. Read the press release if you wish to provide this information to your employees.

Employers and Facebook, Twitter, etc.

Recently there was a report that a city in Montana was asking applicants to provide login and password information for all social media Web sites applicants may visit such as Facebook, Twitter, You Tube, My Space, etc. I am hoping California employers are not considering such measures. California's constitution and other privacy laws restric your ability to do this. Not all states' constitutions specifically address privacy so there may be some actual or perceived flexibility in this arena - but never in California.

Heat Illness Training

CalOSHA chose not to adopt new, emergency regulations yesterday that would have created new training requirements for outdoor workers regarding the prevention of heat illness, particularly concerning provision of water and shade. What this means is that CalOSHA has seen a failure in some employers' training programs and daily updates to their outdoor workers to ensure full implementation of current heat illness training requirements. Make sure your employees are trained and on even a daily basis at the beginning of the shift, remind employees to whom they can direct concerns or complaints, where cool, drinkable water is and to rest / cool off in the shade as needed.

On Duty Meals Okay For Some Fuel Truck Drivers

The DLSE issued an opinion letter today explaining a limited opportunity for valid on duty meal breaks - these are for fuel truck drivers subject to federal safety regulations. Read the full opinion letter. 

Cal-OSHA trying new heat illness regulations?

CalOSHA is holding a meeting next Thursday, June 18, to propose adoption of new, emergency heat illness regulations. There will be no public meeting but public comments are accepted at the June 18 meeting. You can review the proposed emergency regulations here.

If adopted at that meeting, these new requirements will go into effect 10 days later if approved by the Office of Administrative law - June 29 at the latest. Written comments may be submitted to the OAL after OAL receives the regulations.

All elements of CalChamber's heat illness training solution, including our Web site, heat illness mini-book, heat illness poster, HRCalifornia and our publications will be updated if these changes are adopted.

OSHA offers $7 million in new safety and health training grants

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced today that it is soliciting applications for nearly $7 million in Susan Harwood Training Grants available to nonprofit, community and faith-based organizations.

OSHA awards funds to provide training and education programs on safety and health topics for workers and their employers. For fiscal 2009, the program offers 24 targeted topic areas including crane safety, combustible dust, emergency preparedness and response, and the OSHA recordkeeping process.

Training grants will be awarded for a 24-month performance period. Grant solicitations will be published in the June 10 edition of the Federal Register - which you can get by googling "June 10, 2009 federal register OSHA" on June 10. Applications are due July 24, 2009.

Applications for grants must be submitted electronically using the government-wide Web site - www.grants.gov. Applicants can complete the mandatory online registration at any time; however, registration must take place before beginning the application process. Applicants are encouraged to complete registration as soon as possible. Grant applications must be received electronically no later than 4:30 p.m. EDT on July 24, 2009. No extensions of the deadline will be granted.

Questions from the public regarding this announcement should be directed to Cynthia Bencheck at bencheck.cindy@dol.gov or Jim Barnes at barnes.james@dol.gov and telephone (847) 297-4810. Further information on the Susan Harwood Training Grant Program is available on OSHA's Web site.

Starbucks Wins Tip Pooling Lawsuit - spared $86 million

A California appeals court overturns a class action verdict awarding Starbucks shift supervisors $86 million because of Starbucks' tip pooling policy. The court found that the shift supervisors, who were nonexempt employees and performed primarily customer service type tasks along with the baristas, were not "agents" of the company. As such, they were entitled to a portion of the tips received from customers.

Sign up for our free newsletter, HRCalifornia Extra , to get a full report of this case.