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December 20, 2009
New Laws
In 2010 That May Impact Your Business
A
number of legislative and regulatory changes will take
effect in 2010 that may impact the operations and
planning of local businesses.
“Keeping our members informed of the nature and timing
of these types of changes is an important part of the
Chamber’s mission,” said the Chamber’s Legislative
Action Committee (LAC) Chair, Cynthia Schneider. “We
encourage all members to review this information and
contact the Chamber staff with any questions.”
New Form I-9
Revised August 7, 2009, the new Form I-9 contains an
updated list of acceptable documents that employees must
present upon hiring. The new form also bears a note that
all documents presented to establish identity and/or
ability to work in the United States must not be
expired.
E-Verify Required for Federal Contractors
Federal contractors and subcontractors must use the
E-Verify system when hiring employees. Other employers
may use the verification system if they wish to do so.
E-Verify compares Form I-9 document information against
federal government databases to verify employment
eligibility.
Increase in State Withholding
State
withholding increased on November 1, 2009. There is a 10
percent mandatory increase on employee withholdings, a
0.6 percent increase in supplemental wage withholding
and a 1.2 percent increase on wage stock options and
bonus payments.
Alternative Workweek Schedules
The
law regarding alternative workweek schedules was amended
to permit an eight-hour day as a valid alternative
schedule.
Additionally, the Division of Labor Standards
Enforcement (DLSE) issued an opinion letter stating that
under some circumstances, an alternative workweek
schedule may be in place for less than a full year — for
example, during the summer months only.
FMLA Amendments
Federal legislation changed the definition of which
service members are covered for leave under the
"qualifying exigency" category.
For
regular Armed Forces members, "covered active duty"
means duty during the deployment with the Armed Forces
to a foreign country. Reservists are covered when they
are on duty during deployment with the Armed Forces to a
foreign country or notified of an impending call to
active duty.
Civil Air Patrol Leave
Employers with more than 15 employees are subject to a
new leave for employees who are volunteer members of the
Civil Air Patrol.
Minimum Wage for Exempt Computer Professionals and
Licensed Physicians
Rates
for exempt computer professionals and licensed
physicians do not change for 2010. The current rates for
these professions are:
Computer Professionals:
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$37.94/hour
-
$6,587.50/month
-
$79,050/year
Licensed Physicians:
-
$69.13/hour
Safety
AB
1083 (John A. Perez; D-Los Angeles) adds requirements to
the Health and Safety Code requiring all licensed
hospitals to annually conduct a safety and security
assessment.
SB
188 (Runner; R-Lancaster) amends the Code of Civil
Procedure to permit post-secondary educational
institutions to seek temporary restraining orders and an
injunction on behalf of a student or students. This
requires written consent of the student(s).
Out-of-State Marriages
California recognizes out-of-state marriages as legal in
California if they are legal in the state where the
marriage occurred. SB 54 (Leno; D-San
Francisco) provides a same-sex couple's marriage, valid
in the state in which it was contracted, will receive
the same rights in California as spouses, with the
exception of the designation of "marriage."
Workers' Compensation Cannot Be Denied
Workers' compensation cannot be denied because an
employee was killed by a third party in the course of
the employee's work, no personal relationship existed
between them and the injury/death was because of third
party's personal belief relating to the employee's race,
religion, color, national origin, age, gender,
disability, sex or sexual orientation.
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