Of Miscellaneous ProvisionsAgreements Settling Employment Disputes

Section § 1002.5

Explanation

In California, if you're settling an employment dispute, the agreement can't block you from getting a job with the same employer or their related companies in the future. This applies to agreements made after January 1, 2020. However, this doesn't stop an employer from ending your current job or preventing you from future employment if it's documented that you were involved in criminal conduct, such as sexual harassment or assault, before you filed your claim. Employers are also not obliged to rehire someone if there's a valid reason unrelated to discrimination or retaliation.

(a)CA Civil Procedure Code § 1002.5(a) An agreement to settle an employment dispute shall not contain a provision prohibiting, preventing, or otherwise restricting a settling party that is an aggrieved person from obtaining future employment with the employer against which the aggrieved person has filed a claim, or any parent company, subsidiary, division, affiliate, or contractor of the employer. A provision in an agreement entered into on or after January 1, 2020, that violates this section is void as a matter of law and against public policy.
(b)CA Civil Procedure Code § 1002.5(b) Nothing in subdivision (a) does any of the following:
(1)CA Civil Procedure Code § 1002.5(b)(1) Preclude the employer and aggrieved person from making an agreement to do either of the following:
(A)CA Civil Procedure Code § 1002.5(b)(1)(A) End a current employment relationship.
(B)CA Civil Procedure Code § 1002.5(b)(1)(B) Prohibit or otherwise restrict the settling aggrieved person from obtaining future employment with the settling employer, if the employer has made and documented a good faith determination, before the aggrieved person filed the claim that the aggrieved person engaged in sexual harassment, sexual assault, or any criminal conduct.
(2)CA Civil Procedure Code § 1002.5(b)(2) Require an employer to continue to employ or rehire a person if there is a legitimate non-discriminatory or non-retaliatory reason for terminating the employment relationship or refusing to rehire the person.
(c)CA Civil Procedure Code § 1002.5(c) For purposes of this section:
(1)CA Civil Procedure Code § 1002.5(c)(1) “Aggrieved person” means a person who, in good faith, has filed a claim against the person’s employer in court, before an administrative agency, in an alternative dispute resolution forum, or through the employer’s internal complaint process.
(2)CA Civil Procedure Code § 1002.5(c)(2) “Sexual assault” means conduct that would constitute a crime under Section 243.3, 261, 262, 264.1, 286, 287, or 289 of the Penal Code, assault with the intent to commit any of those crimes, or an attempt to commit any of those crimes.
(3)CA Civil Procedure Code § 1002.5(c)(3) “Sexual harassment” has the same meaning as in subdivision (j) of Section 12940 of the Government Code.
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