On April 30th, the California Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion on how the Industrial Wage Orders govern independent contractor versus employer status in California. The case will make it much more difficult for companies to prove that independent contractors are properly classified. Companies engage independent contractors for a variety of reasons including avoidance of ...
Western Growers recently filed an amicus brief in support of petitioners in Weyerhaeuser Co. v. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, an Endangered Species Act case pending in the U.S. Supreme Court. Petitioners challenge a final rule issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service designating critical habitat for the dusky gopher frog, which was upheld ...
H-2A roundtable discussions will be held in Salinas, Sonoma and Napa throughout June to delve into topics including H-2A compliance, implications and best practices. Jason Resnick, Western Growers’ vice president and general counsel, will be among the labor experts who will provide insight on how best to navigate and stay in compliance with the H-2A ...
The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a highly anticipated decision on the issue of whether class action waivers in employment arbitration agreements are enforceable under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA). The Supreme Court’s opinion in three consolidated cases (Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis; Ernst & Young LLP. v. Morris; NLRB v. Murphy Oil) resolves a ...
In a unanimous 138-page opinion issued on May 30, 2018, the Fifth District Court of Appeal vacated the Agricultural Labor Relations Board’s (ALRB) decision to dismiss the decertification petition and set aside the election of Gerawan Farming Inc.’s workers and directed the Board to tally the workers’ ballots that it ordered impounded over four years ...