Learn more about the Labor and Employment Group at Schiff Hardin. Attorneys In This Practice Thurston C. Bailey Eric L. Barnum Howard R. Barron Wendi J. Berkowitz Max G. Brittain Jr. William J. Carroll Nicole Finitzo Laura B. Friedel Stephen M. Hankins Valarie Hays Charlene Q. Kalebic Bita A. Karabian Paula M. Ketcham Matthew D. Lahey Neil Lloyd Catherine M. Masters Ralph A. Morris Marc L. Silverman Henry W. Sledz Jr. Patricia Costello Slovak Drahcir M. Smith Julie Furer Stahr Kathleen A. Stimeling Catherine H. Thompson Richard L. Verkler Nora Kersten Walsh Tamera M. Woodard Schiff Hardin Offices One Atlantic Center, Suite 2300 1201 West Peachtree Atlanta, GA 30309 225 Franklin Street, Suite 2600  Boston, MA 02110  6600 Sears Tower 233 S Wacker Drive Chicago, IL 60606 One Westminster Place Suite 200 Lake Forest, IL 60045 900 Third Avenue New York, NY 10022 One Market, Spear Tower 32nd Floor San Francisco, CA 94105 1666 K Street, NW Suite 300 Washington, DC 20006 - - - - - - - - - Join our mailing list. Forward this alert to a friend or colleague. - - - - - - - - -

Schiff Hardin Labor and Employment Alert

California Wage and Hour Laws Apply to Non-Residents Performing Work in California

In a case with important ramifications for employers with a mobile workforce, the Ninth Circuit decided that non-residents of California who perform work in California are covered by California's wage and hour laws on daily and weekly overtime. In Sullivan v. Oracle Corp., the court held that software instructors residing in Colorado and Arizona who traveled to California to provide training to Oracle customers were entitled to the protections of California law on overtime pay for any work they performed entirely in California in excess of eight hours in one day or 40 hours in one week, or on the seventh consecutive day of work. (The court did not consider the question of whether California's wage and hour law would apply to a worker who worked only part of the day or week in California, but exceeded, in total, any of the threshholds for overtime pay). The court also held that non-California resident workers performing work in California are protected by California's Unfair Competition Act, Business and Professions Code Section 17200. However, the Ninth Circuit rejected the §17200 unfair competition claim (predicated on violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act, rather than the California Labor Code) of non-California residents performing work outside California, holding that §17200 does not have extraterritorial application.

The upshot of Sullivan is that employers with non-exempt workers performing work in California should undertake careful review of these employees' hours to determine if overtime pay is warranted under California law as well as under the law of their resident states.

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RECENT LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT PUBLICATIONS

Labor and Employment Update (November 11, 2008)
A Minute of News and Views: Exit Interviews and Severance Agreements (October 8, 2008)
Labor and Employment Update (September 19, 2008)
Labor and Employment Update (August 20, 2008)
Labor and Employment Update (June 25, 2008)

ABOUT SCHIFF HARDIN LLP

Schiff Hardin LLP represents management in labor matters and employment-related litigation, and provides counsel to employers with respect to all legal aspects of employer-employee relations.

Our firm's labor law practice encompasses both the private sector and the public sector for large and small employers in a broad range of markets and industries.

Our Labor and Employment Group works cooperatively with attorneys in our Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation Group to provide our clients with comprehensive assistance in every aspect of the employer-employee relationship.

For more information, please feel free to contact us.