The California City of Salinas and Agricultural Labor Laws

By admin | December 1, 2018

Salinas Valley is a productive agricultural region which is in the Central Coast Region of California. The valley produces vegetables, flowers, wines, and other edibles. The city of Salinas got popularity due to the production of most beautiful crops and Mediterranean climate.

The cultivation process and the quality of crops are what Salinas known for. This agricultural land is home to laborers as well and to protect their rights, the state had ruled out the Agricultural Labor Relations Act in 1975.

Agricultural Labor Laws

The act was introduced to ensure rights of the labors, better working conditions, and distribution of salaries if needed. Moreover, it wouldn’t be wrong to claim that the law allowed laborers to voice shortcomings, threats from employers, and choose union leaders. However, unions have certain limitations under the act as well to protect employers from grave consequences.

Moreover, the laborers can make a call to report any violation of rules to the Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB) of California. That is an agency formed by the state to ensure the safety of laborers and to take a step against violation. Also, the ALRB can step it in and conduct an immediate action if an employer found guilty.

Despite that, the act contains several significant points including the right of employees and the responsibilities of employers. It also states legal nitty-gritty to deal with an employer when he violates rules and performs a prohibited action.

Rights of Laborers

The Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975 provides various rights to the laborers. The act has a crucial goal to measure safe working conditions. Plus, it protects laborers from working under dangerous circumstances. Some of the significant labor rights are:

They can form a union
They can recover lost wages
They can elect a board
They can go on strike
They have a right to picket

In case, laborers are not allowed to create a union or their right to go on strike seized; they can report it to ALRB to get further assistance.

Prohibitions for Employers

The California Agricultural Labor Relations Act makes employers responsible for the specific activities. The set of prohibitions was introduced to eliminate abuse of power and to promote a better working environment for both employee and employer. The illegal actions include:

Conducting surveillance or spying on employees
Raising a question about the labor union
Threatening employees to prevent their participation in union activities
Impeding access to the organizers of the union
Restricting contact to the ALRB
Prohibiting involvement in union activities during lunch or other breaks

Employers can land in unpleasant circumstances if found responsible for any of these activities. Despite that, they have right to file a complaint if unions begin working against the law.

Bottom Line

Comprehending the agricultural labor law is necessary to create a strong relationship between laborers and employers. So contact Earl Jiang at 866-263-7866 and get legal assistance immediately.

When an H1B Visa Holder Might Need an Immigration Lawyer in San Jose

By admin | October 1, 2018

Globalization is not an unfamiliar term anymore. The world understands it and in fact, benefits from the interconnectivity and interdependencies among countries. Every year, hundreds of thousands of people enter the US in search of opportunities to transform their lives and support their families.

However, the complexity of immigration laws and the current situation between the state of California and the federal government makes it imperative for any immigrant to understand the laws thoroughly before setting foot here. Those who are already working in the US under H1B visas need to get in touch with immigration lawyers to know and defend their rights.

The H1B Visa

Visa is a passport endorsement, and a permission from a country to the individual to cross its borders. Visas can have many different statuses e.g. some allow individuals to work in a country while others only let them stay for a few months. The H1B visa in the US allows foreigners to work professionally in the US. It is a non-immigrant visa status under which the individual can work in the US for only a specified term. However, they can apply for extension of their stay. The visa is for three years and the individual can get an extension of three additional years allowing him/her to stay in the US for six years.

What Can Go Wrong?

While employers and employees both need to benefit from an immigration lawyer, employees need it more. Sometimes, individuals who come to the US in hopes to change their lives can come across their worst nightmares. The company that applies for their visa and employs them refuses to pay their salaries or asks them to perform duties that might not be in their job description. A person who comes to the US for the first time and faces this situation would not know how to handle it.

On most occasions, employees choose to remain quiet and change employers—they consider it the easy way out. However, changing employers often gets them in even deeper trouble. The unsuspecting employee ends up breaching a contract and facing a lawsuit from the company to pay thousands of dollars.

The company might sue the employee for not working for the number of months that were on the signed contract. While California, and as result companies in San Jose, can write such agreements where employees can be penalized for breaching the contracts, they can’t always justify their own actions too.

An Immigration Lawyer to the Rescue

In situation where the employee was not given his salary and made to do tasks that were not in his/her job description, it seems funny and shocking at the same time to be getting sued by the same employer. If the employee with the H1B visa does not take action immediately, they can get in a huge trouble. It only makes sense at that point to hire an immigration lawyer. Not only will the lawyer save the employee from an undeserved lawsuit, but also have the company penalized for their dishonest conduct.

If you live in San Jose and someone you know is in such a situation, call Earl Jiang at 866-263-7866 immediately. Keep in mind that your timely action matters crucially because your H1B visa is only limited to three years.

An Oakland Lawyer Is Indispensable When Opening a Cannabis Business

By admin | September 1, 2018

The days of struggle are gone and interested individuals can now start their own cannabis business in Oakland, California. While the Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA) already allowed people to use marijuana personally, people who were interested in starting their marijuana businesses had to wait until January 1, 2018 before they could sell it legally. Medical and Adult Use of Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act, abbreviated to MAUCRSA, contains the regulations that govern the licensing process of cannabis businesses. Those who want to start theirs in Oakland should consider hiring an Oakland marijuana lawyer to complete the process smoothly.

The Important Considerations When Starting a Cannabis Business in Oakland

It is highly recommendable for anyone interested in starting such a businesses to know the many terms and conditions that apply to them.

The Business Location

The first law you have to know entails your business’ location. Your cannabis business must not be within 600 feet of a K-12 school. In addition to that, you have to main the same 600-ft distance from other dispensaries in the area and youth centers. It is imperative that you realize how Oakland will measure that distance. In this particular case, the city will calculate the distance based on the path of travel. You will also have to have official documents to prove your occupation of the space before you open the business.

The Fee and the Permit

Next, you will complete the permit application form and submit it to the city of Oakland. Other important submissions include the following:

A complete security plan
A secure floor plan
Information on Energy Star
Business registration documents
Occupation documents
Plan for mitigation of odor
Plan for beautifying the community
$2,474 application fee

The Ten Sign-offs

That’s where things can get a bit difficult for you. At this point, you will receive a permit inspection card from the City Manager’s Office that requires you to visit ten different departments and get signatures. Depending on the type of cannabis business you do e.g. cultivation, extraction, etc. you might or might not have to get all the signatures. Here are the names of the offices from where you will get the signatures.

Revenue management bureau
Alameda County Agriculture
Alameda County Environmental Health
Oakland Building Services (Building)
Oakland Building Services (Electrical)
Oakland Building Services (Plumbing)
Oakland Planning/Zoning
Easy Bay Municipal Utility District
Fire Prevention Bureau
Port of Oakland

Be sure to check the details of which sign-offs your business will require.

The Equity Permit Program

The equity program can be quite confusing for most people looking to start their cannabis businesses in Oakland. Only a handful of the businesses can obtain the permit as equity-eligible whereas others have to find different routes. Businesses will have to choose to be equity incubator or equity eligible. The third and last option for businesses is to be patient until these restrictions go away. There is no timeframe on when the restrictions will be removed.

If you have read all the information carefully, you realize at this point that it is still not a smooth ride for anyone who wants to start a marijuana business in Oakland today. With so many controversial regulations and processes to complete, it only makes sense for you to have a marijuana lawyer in Oakland on your side throughout the process. Contact Earl Jiang at 866-263-7866 before you initiate the licensing process for your marijuana business.

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