PHRca Hiring and Onboarding Practices 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under California law, what is the maximum penalty per violation for asking about an applicant's salary history?
- $500
- $1,000 (Correct answer)
- $10,000
- $25,000
Correct answer: $1,000
California Labor Code Section 432.3 allows the Labor Commissioner to issue civil penalties of $100 to $10,000 per violation, but the standard penalty ceiling widely cited for administrative purposes is $10,000.
Question 2: A California employer uses an AI-driven screening tool that disproportionately screens out applicants over 40. Which legal framework is MOST directly implicated?
- California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)
- Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) disparate impact theory (Correct answer)
- California Confidentiality of Medical Information Act
- Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures only
Correct answer: Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) disparate impact theory
FEHA prohibits employment practices with an unjustified disparate impact on protected classes, including age (40+), regardless of intent.
Question 3: California's AB 5 codified a three-part test for independent contractor status. Which element of the ABC test is unique compared to the prior Borello multi-factor test?
- Part A: worker is free from control
- Part B: work is outside the usual course of the hiring entity's business (Correct answer)
- Part C: worker is engaged in an independently established trade
- All three parts existed under Borello
Correct answer: Part B: work is outside the usual course of the hiring entity's business
Part B—requiring that the work be outside the usual course of the hiring entity's business—was the most significant new element added by the ABC test codified in AB 5.
Question 4: When must a California employer provide a new hire with a written notice of pay rate, pay day, and employer contact information?
- Within 10 days of hire
- At the time of hire (Correct answer)
- By the end of the first pay period
- Before the first performance review
Correct answer: At the time of hire
California Labor Code Section 2810.5 (Wage Theft Prevention Act) requires employers to provide the written notice at the time of hire.
Question 5: A staffing agency places a worker at a client company in California. Under the joint employer doctrine, which party bears primary wage payment liability?
- The client company exclusively
- The staffing agency exclusively
- Both the staffing agency and the client company may be jointly liable (Correct answer)
- The worker's union, if applicable
Correct answer: Both the staffing agency and the client company may be jointly liable
California courts and the Labor Commissioner recognize joint employer liability, meaning both the staffing agency and the client can be held responsible for unpaid wages.
Question 6: During onboarding, a new hire discloses a disability and requests a schedule modification. What is the employer's FIRST required step under FEHA?
- Deny the request if it creates undue hardship
- Engage in a timely, good-faith interactive process (Correct answer)
- Obtain a second medical opinion before responding
- Forward the request to the company's legal counsel
Correct answer: Engage in a timely, good-faith interactive process
FEHA requires employers to engage promptly in a good-faith interactive process with the employee to identify a reasonable accommodation.
Question 7: California's 'ban-the-box' law (AB 1008) restricts criminal background check inquiries. When may an employer first ask about conviction history?
- On the initial job application
- After a conditional offer of employment is extended (Correct answer)
- During the first interview
- Before any interviews occur
Correct answer: After a conditional offer of employment is extended
AB 1008 prohibits employers from asking about conviction history until after a conditional offer of employment has been made.
PHRca Hiring and Onboarding Practices 2
Under California law, what is the maximum penalty per violation for asking about an applicant's salary history?