Oregon joins Seattle, San Francisco, California, Emeryville, and New York City in developing a predictive scheduling law as an addition to its minimum wage rules. The provisions of instrument number S.B. 828 will start to take full effect on the 1st of July, 2018. The provisions are meant to regulate the way in which employers… Read More
Posts Categorized In: Employment Benefits
Origins of Unions and Employment Law
Unions are something that most Americans have heard about. In the past, the media covered unions like the Major League Baseball Players Union. During the Great Recession and the auto bankruptcies, there was much coverage of the Auto Workers Union. The airlines consistently negotiate with unions representing pilots and mechanics. Unions are nothing new on… Read More
The Keys to Unlocking Workplace Happiness
Happiness at work: everyone wants it. But can everyone get it? Believe it or not, the answer is “yes.” Even if you’re not working your dream job, there are some things you can do to be happy wherever you are. Just remember the two R’s:relationships and results. Relationships People are happier at work… Read More
Washington Employers & Wellness Programs
Recently the Seattle Times published a story focusing on the effects of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), or Obamacare, on employer provided health insurance benefits. The article addresses many employee concerns, such as reduced hours to avoid required employee coverage, increased premiums, and changes in benefits. It also discusses a feature and change that has… Read More
Flu Season and Seattle Paid Sick Leave
Flu season is in full swing and a recent Seattle Times story urges people to get flu shots and, if they have the flu, to stay home. Staying home allows for faster healing by making it easier to get rest, hydration, and medications, and helps prevent the spread of the flu, or any illness for… Read More
Will SeaTac Set the Stage for Raising Minimum Wage?
Minimum wage has been a hot button issue in 2013, with several states across the country raising their minimum wage amounts and Washington, D.C. lawmakers trying to do so on the federal level. Fast food workers in particular have been walking off the job, demanding a wage increase to $15.00 per hour. Corporate giants such… Read More
Amazon Teams Up With USPS For Sunday Deliveries
Amazon has been in the headlines a lot lately. First, it announced its intent to hire nearly 70,000 holiday employees, many of whom could become full-time after the holiday season. Now Amazon has made a deal with the United States Postal Service (USPS) to provide its customers with Sunday deliveries. Initially the Sunday delivery service… Read More
Rights Under Oregon Wage and Hour Laws
All Oregon employees have specific rights under both state and federal wage and hour laws. On the federal level, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires that employer pay employees a minimum hourly wage of $7.25 per hour, as well as time and a half that hourly wage for overtime hours. Oregon employment laws enforce… Read More
Mayor Vetoes Living Wage Bill
As previously discussed on this blog, Washington, D.C. lawmakers had approved a bill that would require large retailers to pay their employees a living wage of at least $12.50 per hour, as opposed to the usual D.C. minimum wage of $8.25 per hour. The bill, called the Large Retailer Accountability Act of 2013 (LRAA), defined… Read More
Washington Employees Are Allowed Time Off for Jury Duty But Not Elections
On November 5, SeaTac residents will decide whether they will raise the nation’s highest minimum wage from $9.19 to $15 an hour. Proposition 1, if passed, would require business in the SeaTac area to pay employees more than double the national minimum wage. The dramatic increase in minimum wage is intended to help struggling SeaTac… Read More