“We told them about it in the handbook” is the line that does the least work in the lawsuit. Productivity monitoring software — keystroke logging, screen capture at intervals, idle-time scoring, application-use tracking — has moved into small-business operations. A…
Belief: when a manager adjusts a high performer’s schedule to handle a family situation, that is a personnel favor — not a compliance issue. The favor becomes a compliance issue the moment another employee compares notes and the file shows…
Belief: using a public GenAI tool for legal work is like using a search engine, so privilege stays intact. Privilege depends on confidentiality. If a tool’s terms allow retention or disclosure, your prompts and outputs can become discoverable, and the…
Belief: if an automated hiring tool rejects someone, the vendor owns the risk. In California, employers own the hiring workflow. Tools can filter, score, and rank, but the legal exposure attaches to the decision process and the proof behind it….
Belief: religious accommodations are about schedules and clothing, not technology. As AI becomes embedded in daily work, some employees will object to using certain tools on religious grounds. The employer’s risk is treating the request as ridiculous instead of treating…
Belief: a complaint that reads like a legal brief must be accurate. AI can improve structure and language without improving truth. The words can look confident even when the facts are thin. The failure pattern is confusing labels with events….
Belief: AI makes exempt roles safer because it makes people more efficient. Efficiency can quietly strip the work of what made it exempt in the first place. If the job shifts from independent judgment to approving automated recommendations, the role…
Belief: confidentiality agreements protect trade secrets even if employees use public AI tools. Trade secret protection depends on secrecy and reasonable controls. When employees upload sensitive material into unapproved AI systems, the secrecy story can collapse. The failure pattern is…
Belief: if an AI tool joins meetings to take notes, consent is handled by the platform. In California, consent is a workflow the employer owns. Recording and transcription risk grows when notice is inconsistent or treated as implied. The failure…
Belief: if the work happened entirely in California, the employer can’t rely on the Federal Arbitration Act unless it proves interstate commerce. That belief drives bad drafting and bad motion practice. A recent California appellate decision reinforces a practical reality:…
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