Steven Kesten, Esq.
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Employment Law Update for 2013

12/9/2012
EMPLOYMENT LAW UPDATE FOR 2013

Greetings:

Ten years ago I attended a luncheon sponsored by the Marin County Bar Association. The guest speaker was then former Governor Jerry Brown. Governor Brown made many astute observations during his speech, but one item stands out in my memory. He said that since leaving his position as Governor of California, the State of California had added in excess of 25,000 new laws. As you can see, the pace of new legislation hasn’t abated in the ten years since Governor Brown addressed the Marin County Bar.

Happy holidays and best wishes for a healthy and prosperous new year.

Regards,
Steve


Commission Agreements Deadline
Employers must put all commission agreements in writing by January 1, 2013. Any employee hired to perform work for payment of a commission in California must receive a written contract that includes the method for calculating and paying the commissions.

Passed in 2011, this mandate of AB 1396 applies to employers located inside and outside California. It amended Labor Code Section 2751, which previously applied only to employers with no fixed California location. In 2012, the law was further clarified with respect to what types of plans are excluded from the written commission agreement requirement.

The new law appears simple and straightforward. However, with respect to employees that are paid both an hourly wage and a commission, a number of potential pitfalls within the law could result in wage-and-hour claims filed against employers.

asonable driving distance of the employee’s residence; or (2) provide a copy of the records by mail.