In this installment of Cook Brown's series of podcasts on employment, construction, and labor law issues for California employers, partner Brian Bertoss talks about payment remedies available to construction contractors on construction projects performed in California.

California is a battleground for wage and hour litigation. There are a number of reasons why.  One is the difficulty that even the best intentioned employers have managing and enforcing meal and rest breaks for hourly employees.  What does the law say? Cook Brown Partner Terry Wills looks at California meal and rest break law and offers steps that employers can take to enhance compliance.

Retaliation claims by employees against their employers are easy claims to make and difficult to defend.  They are now, in fact, the most common employment claim asserted against employers, ahead of discrimination and harassment claims. Why, and what can an employer do to guard against them?   In this podcast, Cook Brown Partner Barbara Cotter discusses retaliation claims  – the grounds for these claims, how and when they are alleged, and the policies that employers can enact to help avoid them.

Poorly drafted handbooks can run afoul of the National Labor Relations Act when they overstep certain employee rights. Steve McCutcheon looks at the case of In-and-Out Burger and the "Fight for $15" button.