Wednesday, December 5, 2012
10:00am - 11:00am PST
The 2012 Presidential election was so close, so expensive, and so divisive (20 states have petitioned to secede from the Union), that many people wonder if President Obama and a divided Congress will be able to effectively govern the country for the next four years. Mirroring these concerns, the Dow Jones industrial average fell by as much as 369 points on November 7th and closed at its lowest level since August.
In California, we already have a Democrat majority in the State House and the elections produced a Democratic super-majority in the State Senate and State Assembly –it is the first time since 1933 that one party has had a supermajority in both houses of the Legislature. The new landscape in Sacramento allows the Legislature to pass tax increases and other legislation without significant opposition. Many California businesses reported that they put off capital investments and employment decisions until after the election and now some business are thinking about leaving California.
So, what can we expect to see on the federal and state employment and labor agenda? On the federal side, we can expect that President Obama will seek to effect pro-employee changes through Executive Orders. In addition, the Department of Labor and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) will ramp up their regulatory and enforcement activities to make it easier for unions to organize, easier for employees to raise and win wage and hour claims, easier for the government agencies to pursue audits and actions against employers, and much harder for employers to profitably and efficiently run their businesses.
In California, we can expect to see a slew of proposed legislation (especially in the area of wage and hour and discrimination law) that will be decidedly pro-employee and pro-organized labor. In the past, the "only in California" employment legislation had a relatively bumpy road to passage. Going forward, there will be fewer, if any, obstacles to such bills making it to the Governor's desk. Employers should fasten their seat belts – we are in for a wild ride!
The topics for this webinar include:
- Updates on federal and state employment legislation and regulations.
- The agenda of the EEOC and National Labor Relations Board.
- The agenda of the Department of Labor's Wage Hour Division, OSHA, and OFCCP.
- The agenda of the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) and the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE).
Register for the webinar:
Webinar – Wednesday, December 5, 2012, 10:00am PST
About the Speaker
Betsy Johnson, Shareholder, Ogletree Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C.
Ms. Johnson provides day-to-day advice and counsel to her clients on a broad spectrum of employment and labor relations issues, including state and federal wage and hour; employee compensation; employee leaves of absence; discrimination and harassment; performance management; and discipline and termination. She assists employers in developing, drafting, and implementing personnel policies and procedures and developing strategies for managing disability and employee leave of absence issues. She also assists and represents employers in negotiating collective bargaining agreements and in grievance and arbitration proceedings.
Ms. Johnson conducts training for Human Resources professionals and supervisory employees on many topics, including: California AB 1875 Mandatory Harassment Training; Effective Hiring and Interviewing; Proactive Performance Management; Avoiding Discrimination, Harassment, and Wrongful Termination Claims; and Managing Disability and Employee Leaves of Absence.
Ms. Johnson is a frequent speaker at trade and industry conferences, Chambers of Commerce meetings, and Bar Association seminars.
