Tag: California warehouse

California Restrictions on Warehouse Quotas About to Take Effect With 2022 right around the corner, California warehouse employers will soon need to prepare for Assembly Bill 701 to go into effect. This bill, set to take effect on January 1st, 2022, will apply significant regulations and restrictions on the use of quotas in warehouses. This bill will apply to all employers of 100 or more non-exempt employees within one warehouse distribution center as well as those with 1,000 or more in one or more warehouse distribution centers within California. Covered employers will be required to provide each employee with a written description of any quotas to which they are subject upon their hiring or within 30 days of the law's effective date. This written description must include any number of tasks that an employee is expected to perform or any number of materials which they are expected to produce or handle within a defined time frame. This must also include any adverse actions that may result from failing to meet these quotas. If a quota is undisclosed or unlawful, then an employer is forbidden from taking adverse action against an employee for failing to meet it. Once in effect, this bill will also forbid employers from instituting quotas that may prevent an employee from being able to use a bathroom facility, take required meal or rest breaks, or comply with occupational health or safety requirements. The time that is spent by an employee to comply with occupational health and safety requirements must be regarded under this bill as productive time for the purposes of measuring for a quota or by monitoring systems. This bill will provide employees that believe a quota at any time violated their right to rest periods or meals or made them violate an occupational safety or health standard or law the right to a written summary of the quotas they were or are subject to and data about their personal work speed for the past 90 days. The bill allows for a private right of action from past and current employees, enabling them to bring an action for injunctive relief and thus obtain compliance with the requirements specified—perhaps the most worrisome update for employers. If the employees win their suits, they can recoup both attorney's fees and costs. However, former employees may only request their data concerning work speed once. If this bill goes into effect, the Labor Commissioner and the Department of Industrial Relations, along with the Divisions of Workers' Compensation and Occupational Health and Safety, will begin enforcing the bill and coordinating their efforts. One section of the bill ensures the legislature will receive a report from the Labor Commissioner by January 1st, 2023, relating information on warehouses with above-industry-average annual rates of employee injury, how many claims were filed with the commissioner, and how many investigations and enforcement actions per employer have been begun. Moreover, the commissioner will be notified by the Division of Workers' Compensation or the Division of Occupational Health and Safety of any employers or workplaces with annual rates of employee injury at or above one and a half times the average annual rates of injury for the warehousing industry. Lorena Gonzalez, an assembly member, and former union official created AB 701, believing quotas prevent workers from complying appropriately with safety policies or recuperating during breaks from the strain of productive time, leaving them at risk of injury and stress-related conditions. However, California's Chamber of Commerce has opposed the bill describing it as a "job-killer due to the confusing regulations it imposes and the potential for frivolous lawsuits it creates. Employer Takeaways With this new bill set to go into effect in only days, it is important to ensure procedures are in place to comply. This means ensuring employees are made aware of any quotas to which they are subject and that these quotas will not prevent them from complying with break periods and occupational health and safety guidelines. Make sure your company policies are compliant with State law by reading up on fair chance hiring practices. Learn more by downloading our free resource on Adverse Action Notice Protocols in Compliance With FCRA. STAY COMPLIANT WITH YOUR BACKGROUND CHECKS

Tag: California warehouse

California Restrictions on Warehouse Quotas About to Take Effect

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