Thanks to AB-51, companies in California can no longer require workers, as a condition of their employment, to sign away their rights to claims of discrimination, unfair pay, or sexual harassment. First, mandatory employee arbitration agreements can be more costly for workers and tend to end more favorably for employers. A company could overlook something like sexual harassment because prior victims’ claims would be confidential, protecting the company from prior claims being used against them.
What if you just refused to sign the arbitration agreement? You risk being fired or never hired in the first place. The bill only affects new employees because workers who have already signed employee arbitration agreements may still be locked into them if a company chooses to force the issue.
If you feel you’ve been forced to sign an arbitration agreement as a condition of employment, call the employment Law Offices of Garry M. Tetalman today at (805) 879-7518.