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Update on California Employment Law 
By: Colin R Cherry
This year saw the hourly rate of California workers rise to $8.00, a rise of over 13% thanks to the recently enacted statutes of California employment law. Because of this California now has the highest hourly rate in the USA.
An added plus is that meal and lodging credits rose by a similar percentage for those workers receiving them from their employers. On the downside, these credits can be included when calculating the minimum wage payable by employers.
Unfortunately, if you are a federal employee and work outside California, your wage remains at $5.15/hour. That bites!
The issue that is receiving most attention at the current time is the payment of overtime. Under California employment law there are two classes of worker - non-exempt and exempt and the inability to know the difference can prove to be expensive
Exempt employees could be eligible for a tax rebate on their overtime earnings whereas non-exempt employees would not qualify for this rebate.
Non-exempt workers do gain a certain level of protection though when compared to exempt workers. Their employers are subject to all the pay rules and regulations set up by the Industrial Welfare Commission, including overtime pay. This means that all non-exempt employees must be paid for all overtime hours worked.
If you are in doubt as to what category your workers fall into, check California employment law codes and regulations for the answer. If it still isn't clear, then call the Department of Labor.
In general to be an exempt employee it would depend on the level of responsibility they have, or their professional status. This doesn't have anything to do with their job title, or whether or not they get a salary or and hourly wage.
Examples of exempt employees under California employment law would include licensed professionals such as lawyers, engineers, doctors, certified public accountants and architects. Managerial staff who are responsible for training, hiring and firing and spend less than 50 percent of their time performing the same duties as their staff also qualify.
Two other categories that are considered to be exempt are travelling sales representatives and those who create or formulate business policies for their organizations. Again, if you have any questions about exempt versus non-exempt employees and how to make sure they are paid according to the law, check with the nearest Department of Labor office.
Article Source: http://www.uberarticles.com/articles
For more related articles visit Colin R Cherry's Employment Guide, and Employment Law sites.
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