April 2001

WIN AT WORK MONTHLY

A Community Service of DON D. SESSIONS, A PROFESSIONAL LAW CORP., Employee Rights Attorneys
	Win At Work FUN WORK Work should be fun. But people haven’t always thought that way. In the Middle Ages, laughter was thought unbecoming. A serious work ethic required “keeping your nose to the grindstone.” Yet all that changed as employers saw “attitude” as a stimulus for productivity. Thomas Edison said, “I never did a day’s work in my life—it was all fun!” He obviously enjoyed what he did, and good results followed. The respected business consultant Tom Peters advised, “Have a collegial, supportive, yeasty, zany, laughter‑filled environment where folks support one another.” Humor can’t solve all workplace problems, but it can certainly help reduce tension. One joke, witty pun, or absurd comparison might make the difference in closing a sale or diffusing an argument. So next time you think of never mixing business with pleasure, remember what King Solomon said in the Bible, “A merry heart doeth good like medicine.” Now did you hear the one about . . . ?		Employee Rights Update PAY RIGHTS DURING BLACKOUTS What are your rights if sent home during a blackout? Exempt (salaried) pay cannot normally be docked unless employees miss an entire week. Non-exempt (hourly) employees are normally entitled to a minimum 4 hours pay if sent home early. But a little known exemption applies if a public utility fails to supply electricity, water or gas. Then, employers may send non-exempt employees home without pay. But if required to remain at work until power is restored, employers must pay, even if no work is performed. What if you are called back when the power returns? Normally, employers must pay a minimum of 2 hours’ pay for the second reporting in a single day. But in a power outage, your employer need only pay for hours actually worked. Employees may be owed pay if sent home but held on “standby.” This depends on how free you are to pursue personal matters. By Mark J. Keough, Attorney
		Update on our attorneys – We’ve updated our website (job-law.com) to include more articles as well as information about our Executive Job-LawÔ services. Proposed legislation to improve the rights of employees to copy their personnel files authored by Stephen Kimball and Don Sessions was enthusiastically endorsed by the Orange County and California Bar Associations and is now pending legislation (Assembly Bill 1635) in Sacramento. More on this in future issues.
Look for our answers to employees’ questions in the "Shop Talk" column of the Los Angeles Times’ Sunday Business Section or the “Life and Work Q & A” column of the Orange County Register’s "Business Monday" magazine. Click here to add (or here to delete) your E-mail address to or from our monthly mailing list. For more employee rights information, click here for our website, job-law.com; here to order our book, Employee Rights in California; or contact our office directly at 23456 Madero, Suite 170, Mission Viejo, CA 92691, (949) 380-0900, (800) 774-7494, mailto:attorneys@job-law.com. The Win at Work portion of Win at Work Monthly is from our ongoing syndicated column appearing in Times/Mirror Publications (including Los Angeles Jobs and Orange County Jobs) and elsewhere. Win at Work Monthly is intended for general information and should not be construed as legal advice or opinion. Readers in need of legal advice should promptly retain the services of an attorney. ©2001 by Don D. Sessions.