Physical medicine treatments like physical therapy, acupuncture and chiropractic care correspond with reduced opioid prescription use among injured workers, a new study has found. Workers who were treated using physical medicine while also being prescribed an opioid all received lower doses of prescribed opioids compared with workers with similar injuries who did not receive physical […]
California’s controversial independent contractor law suffered its first two legal setbacks in January after trucking firms and independent truckers were able beat back at the new law in court. On Jan. 8, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge ruled that AB 5 does not apply to independent truckers because they are covered by federal […]
With increases in litigation and federal and state enforcement of wage and hour laws, employers should make sure they comply with laws at both the federal and state levels. All businesses should conduct periodic self-audits addressing the various wage and hour issues that are applicable to their workplace, in order to avoid the most common […]
6. Return of the individual mandate A new law brings back the individual mandate requiring Californians at least to secure health insurance coverage or face tax penalties. This comes after the penalties for not abiding by the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate were abolished by Congress in late 2017. Starting in 2020, California residents will […]
The new decade is starting off with a massive swell of important new laws and regulations that will affect California businesses. There are so many new laws and regulations that companies have to be on their toes especially at the start of 2020 to get their bearings. This is the first of a two-part entry […]
More and more companies are being sued for discrimination by job applicants who have legally been prescribed medical marijuana, after they failed pre-employment drug screenings or because of their use of the substance. The issue of medical marijuana is difficult in terms of the employment picture, especially now that 33 states and the District of […]
Imagine several small businesses located around the country. Each is well-established and profitable. Each of them bought business insurance – property, liability, automobile and workers’ compensation. They told their agents they wanted the lowest possible price for coverage, and the agents came through. But they didn’t also take their agents’ recommendations to purchase additional coverage. […]
All year long you have been reminding your employees to “work safely … don’t take short cuts … prevent accidents.” To do this they have to keep their minds on their work, but this time of the year as the holidays near, their minds might be everywhere else but on work. They may be thinking […]
One outgrowth of a new California law that applies more stringent criteria for what constitutes an independent contractor is that many employers are likely to see more audits and calls for additional premium from their workers’ comp insurers. In fact, it’s already happening in some industries, according to the insurance industry trade press. More and […]