Transportation 19

California has recently entered a Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") with the Department of Labor ("DOL").  California now joins the ranks of eleven other states taking part in this initiative. The eleven states are Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Utah, and Washington. The purpose of the California-DOL MOU is to target worker misclassification and permit information sharing between the state and federal agencies at issue with regard to this issue. California's cooperation with the DOL comes on the heels of SB 459, the recent California misclassification bill that went into effect January 1.  Under the amended California Labor Code, businesses now be assessed civil penalties when found in violation for having misclassified workers.