Greater Coachella Valley Chamber of Commerce
  • Join the Chamber
  • Business Directory
  • GCVCC
    • Articles Of Incorporation
    • GCVCC Board of Directors
    • Staff
    • Ambassadors
  • Events
  • Legislative Action
    • Legislative Platform
    • Active Legislation
    • Elected Leaders
  • Resources & Publications
    • Get Your Business Known
    • Focus on Small Business
    • Business Support
    • Publications
    • The Gem
    • Hot Deals
  • Our Partners
    • Pure Community / My-Local-Valley
    • Office Depot Chamber Rewards Program
    • Leadership Coachella Valley
  • News
    • Community
    • City
    • Business
    • Non-Profit news
    • Arts & Entertainment
    • Legislative Advocacy Updates
    • E-Newsletter Signup
    • Submit Your News
  • Chambers
    • Desert Advertising Federation
    • Cathedral City Chamber
    • Coachella Chamber
    • Desert Hot Springs Chamber
    • Indian Wells Business District
    • Indio Chamber of Commerce
    • La Quinta Chamber
    • Unincorporated Riverside County
  • Join
  • Business Directory
  • GCVCC
    • Article of Incorporation
    • GCVCC Board of Directors
    • Staff
    • Ambassadors
  • Events
    • Events & Registration
  • Legislative Action
    • Legislative Platform
    • Active Legislation
    • Elected Leaders
  • Resources & Publications
    • Get Your Business Known
    • Focus on Small Business
    • Business Support
    • Publications
    • The Gem
    • Hot Deals
  • Our Partners
    • Pure Community /
      My-Local-Valley
    • Office Depot Chamber Rewards Program
    • Leadership Coachella Valley
  • News
    • Community
    • City
    • Business
    • Non-profit
    • Arts & Entertainment
    • Legislative Advocacy Updates
    • E-Newsletter Signup
    • Submit your news
  • Chambers
    • Cathedral City Chamber
    • Coachella Chamber
    • Desert Advertising Federation
    • Desert Hot Springs Chamber
    • Indio Chamber of Commerce
    • La Quinta Chamber
    • Indian Wells Business District
    • Unincorporated Riverside County

News

Anti-Arbitration Job Killer Threatens to Flood Courts

September 1, 2019

News from Cal Chamber:

Sacramento, CA:  An anti-arbitration bill identified by the California Chamber of Commerce as a job killer will burden the overworked court system if adopted.

AB 51 (Gonzalez; D-San Diego) prohibits arbitration of labor and employment claims as a condition of employment.

The CalChamber has tagged AB 51 as a job killer due to the significant increased costs employers will face as a result of more litigation and the expense of delayed dispute resolutions if the bill becomes law.

AB 51 also proposes to add a new private right of action under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and exposes employers to criminal liability for any violation.

Preempted by Federal Law

In opposing AB 51, the CalChamber has emphasized repeatedly that the bill will undoubtedly be challenged in court, creating more litigation without providing any benefit to employees as intended.

Last year, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. vetoed a virtually identical bill, AB 3080 (Gonzalez; D-San Diego), citing his recognition that the bill “plainly violates federal law.”

Both the California Court of Appeal and the U.S. Supreme Court have held specifically that state legislation trying to ban arbitration agreements is preempted by federal law, the Federal Arbitration Act.

Numerous opinions by the U.S. Supreme Court and the California Supreme Court over the last decade have consistently held that any state law which interferes with, discriminates against, or limits the use of arbitration is preempted by federal law.

Criminal Liability

Given the placement of AB 51’s provisions in the Labor Code, any violation will be a misdemeanor.

Accordingly, employers will face both civil liability for any violation of AB 51 and also may face criminal charges regarding arbitration agreements.

More Lawsuits

Because any violation of AB 51’s provisions will be an “unlawful employment practice,” it is subject to the private right of action under FEHA.

Besides placing more costs and burden on the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, AB 51 will expose employers to another layer of costly litigation, including attorney’s fees and punitive damages.

Delays

Neither employers nor employees will benefit from the delays and uncertainty AB 51 will cause.

If the use of arbitration is limited, options remaining for employees to resolve many labor and employment claims are a hearing before the Labor Commissioner (an office that lacks funding or resources for timely responses) and the overworked court system.

Countering the notion that employees can fare better in court, a state Department of Industrial Relations review of 1,500 settlement agreements found that the plaintiffs’ attorneys had failed to protect employees or were of only marginal assistance in 75% of the cases.

The CalChamber and a coalition of employer groups and local chamber of commerce continue to oppose AB 51 as a job killer.

Recent Posts

  • County Activates Incident Management Team, Plans for Regional COVID-19 Vaccine Supersites
  • The 2021 AMERICAN ADVERTISING AWARDS are now accepting entries
  • California Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant Program

Upcoming Events

Jan 22
11:30 am - 12:30 pm

Chamber Connect – Network Like A Pro!

Jan 25
11:45 am - 12:45 pm

Destination Talent Coachella Valley: 2021 Education Workforce Series

Jan 29
11:30 am - 12:30 pm

Chamber Connect – Network Like A Pro!

Feb 16
10:00 am - 11:00 am

County of Riverside 4th District Town Hall Webinar – Small Business Resources

Mar 8
All day

2021 American Advertising Awards

View more
760.347.0676
760.347.6069
[email protected]

Locations

Coachella

1515 6TH ST.
Coachella, CA 92236

M – TH | 8:30am – 4:30pm

Cathedral City

68487 E Palm Canyon Drive
BLDG. 3 | SUITE 31
Cathedral City, CA 92234

T – F | 8:30am – 4:30pm

Indio

82-921 Indio Blvd.
Indio, CA 92201

M – F | 8:30am – 4:30pm

Desert Hot Springs

12561 Palm Drive
SUITE C
Desert Hot Springs, CA 92240

M – F | BY APPOINTMENT ONLY

La Quinta

78015 Main Street
SUITE 206
La Quinta, CA 92253

M – F | BY APPOINTMENT ONLY

  • Contact Us
  • Terms of Use
© Greater Coachella Valley Chamber of Commerce. All rights reserved.

Sign up for the latest news and updates from GCVCC.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.