Jon Siders

Benefits

Covered California Health Insurance Prices Will Skyrocket Starting in 2017

Individuals in California who buy health insurance through Covered California will see an average increase of 13.2 percent added to their premiums in 2017. While this number reflects the average increase in premiums throughout the state as a whole, some counties in California will see premiums increase on average as much as 28.6 percent.

August 5, 2016 ・4 mins read

HR News

California’s Minimum Wage Laws Vary by City: Learn How They Affect You Where Your Business Operates

In a previous post, I wrote about how California is in the process of raising the state-wide minimum wage to $15 an hour by January 1, 2021. However, many California jurisdictions are raising their own minimum wages even sooner.

July 19, 2016 ・2 mins read

HR News

The New Minimum Salary for Exempt Status Could More Than Double in 2016. Here is What You Need to Know to be Prepared

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is in the process of amending the overtime exemption rules under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Currently, the FLSA provides an exemption from overtime pay for employees who meet certain tests regarding their job duties and who are paid on a salary basis at no less than $455 a week. This new rule would dramatically increase the number of employees eligible for overtime pay by the end of 2016. Under the proposed new regulations, the threshold for exempt status would go from $23,600 per year ($455 per week) to $50,440 per year ($970 per week) – an amount in the 40th percentile of earnings for full-time salaried workers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The DOL estimates that this increase in salary threshold for exempt status would affect approximately five million workers, making them eligible for overtime pay. In California alone, 420,000 workers would be affected. Why the increase in exempt status salary? President Obama directed the DOL to change their minimum pay for exempt status because more and more employees worked in excess of 40 hours per week for pay that would put them below the federal poverty threshold. The wage threshold hasn’t changed since 2004, which is the only time it has been updated since the 1970s. Importantly, the new regulation would also include changes to the salary threshold every year, based on wage growth and inflation.

March 14, 2016 ・4 mins read

HR News

Business in California is About to Change: Here is What California Business Owners Need to Know Before January 1, 2018

A flurry of new laws will sweep California starting on January 1, 2018, impacting California businesses of all sizes. These laws run the gamut, affecting parental leave, hiring, minimum wage and expanded harassment training. Let’s dive in to a few of these changes in more detail and what you need to know to prepare.

・8 mins read

HR News

Amended Harassment and Discrimination Rules Are Here – Starting with California

California-based employers with five or more employees must now comply with amended anti-discrimination regulations regarding the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) that went into effect on April 1, 2016.

・5 mins read

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