Industry Updates

EFFORTS ARE afoot to create new laws and regulations that would require California employers to include the opioid overdose medication Narcan in their first aid kits. Cal/OSHA’s Standards Board has received a petition from a safety group asking it to create new regulations requiring workplaces to stock medications that can reverse opioid overdoses. On the …

Continue reading “April 2024 – Workplace Safety – Overdose Meds May Be Coming to Your First Aid Kit”

THE WORKERS’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California will recommend changes to class codes for some electronics manufacturing sectors, as well as increases to the wage thresholds for construction industry dual classifications. The move comes after the Rating Bureau’s governing committee unanimously approved proposed changes, which will be sent in March to the state insurance …

Continue reading “April 2024 – Worker’s Comp – Electronics, Construction Class Code Changes”

THE CALIFORNIA Workers’ Compensation Uniform Statistical Reporting Plan requires that employers report small, medical-only first-aid claims to their insurance carrier.   Many employers fail to report these claims as they consider them too small since the worker doesn’t lose any time from work and they don’t have to go to a doctor. Under Rating Bureau …

Continue reading “January 2024 – Workers’ Compensation – Rules on First Aid Claims Reporting”

THE EQUAL Employment Opportunity Commission continues seeing a steady flow of complaints for one of the more common forms of workplace bias — age discrimination.   The number of court filings the EEOC made under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) in fiscal year 2023 was more than double that of fiscal year 2022. …

Continue reading “January 2024 – Human Resources – Age Discrimination Cases Up; Set Strong Policies”

EVERY YEAR, bills passed by the state Legislature and signed into law by the governor take effect, and 2023 was a busy legislative session in Sacramento. The end result is another set of new laws that employers need to stay on top of in the New Year.   1. Sick leave law expanded A new …

Continue reading “January 2024 – Top 10 California Laws, Regs for 2024”

COMMERCIAL PROPERTY owners throughout California are getting hit with significant insurance rate hikes and non-renewal notices as a confluence of factors reverberate through the market. The commercial property insurance industry is struggling with years of losses after paying out billions of dollars annually for increasingly costly and numerous wildfire claims in California and other natural …

Continue reading “October 2023 – Commercial Property Insurance – The Hidden Cost Driver behind Rate Hikes”

CALIFORNIA INSURANCE Commissioner Ricardo Lara has issued an order that cut the average advisory workers’ compensation benchmark rate across all classes by 2.6%, starting Sept. 1. The benchmark rate, also known as the pure premium rate, is a baseline that covers just the cost of claims and claims adjusting, but not other overhead like rents, …

Continue reading “October 2023 – Workers’ Compensation – Insurance Commissioner Orders Rate Reduction”

FLEET OPERATORS face an increased risk of potential liability if they are not diligent about checking their drivers’ moving violation records with the state Department of Motor Vehicles, in addition to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse. As of 2020, it became mandatory that all motor carriers sign up their drivers …

Continue reading “October 2023 – Transportation Hiring Alert – Always Check New Drivers’ Clearinghouse Record”

THE U.S. Department of Labor has issued its long-awaited proposed changes to the nation’s overtime rules for American workers, proposing to increase the threshold for exempt status by more than 50% to just over $55,000. Under DOL rules, workers who are exempt from overtime rules — typically managers, executives, and certain administrators — must make …

Continue reading “October 2023 – 50% Increase in Overtime Pay Threshold On Tap”

With more and more California businesses being forced to go to the California FAIR Plan for their coverage, the market of last resort has moved to increase its commercial property coverage limits significantly. This should bring a semblance of relief to companies located in wildfire-prone areas, who have seen their commercial property insurance non-renewed and …

Continue reading “July 2023 – Commercial Property Insurance – FAIR Plan More Than Doubles Coverage Limits”