Sick Leave Switches
How does the new law impact household employees?
I am a working single mom, and about six months ago I hired a nanny to help around the house on days I work late or the occasional weekend. Until now I’ve paid an hourly wage for hours worked, and I’m wondering how California’s new sick leave act will impact how I pay my nanny?
Startup of the Month: Brown Lawn Green
In dry times, the grass can be greener with paint
Short on water for your grass? Just add paint, says Bill Schaffer, owner of Brown Lawn Green in Dixon. The idea for his business started as a joke. With California in the midst of a historic drought, Schaffer commented to his girlfriend that people would have to start painting their lawns if they wanted them to be green again. When the state introduced strict new rules concerning water use, he realized he might be onto something.
Small Home, Big Benefits
Five ways tiny housers say they’re better off
McMansion, meet tiny house. The symbol of the bubbling 2000s hasn’t exactly been displaced by the sub-400-square-foot home. But for many homebuyers in insecure times, shrinking their square footage has also downsized their worries.
Office Style in the Triple Digits
Don’t let professionalism take a back seat in the summer heat
Trying to dress professionally in the blistering heat is a very real predicament. With air conditioning inside and blazing temperatures outside, you must dress smart: Smart layering and smart color choices are going to get you through the rest of summer.
Head in the Clouds
California State Senate pro Tem Kevin de León has an aggressive plan to curb climate change
Senate pro Tem Kevin de León is California’s first Latino Senate leader in more than 130 years. He has championed an aggressive agenda centered on transitioning the state away from fossil fuels and toward a low-carbon, high renewable energy economy. We sat down with him recently to discuss that transition.
Survival of the Fishes
California depends on hatcheries to maintain the state’s salmon population, but the cost is genetically inferior fish
Every spring and summer, Chinook salmon gather in vast schools along the central coast of California, fattening up on krill and small fish before their autumn spawning migration into the Central Valley. Fishermen in commercial boats, private skiffs and kayaks take to the water, and most summers, the fleet catches several hundred thousand Chinook weighing somewhere between five and 30 pounds. California’s bounty of salmon, however, does not reflect a thriving fish population.
Sutter on the Move
Sutter hospital’s new Anderson Lucchetti Women’s and Children’s Center opens and staff say goodbye to their old home
It’s early Saturday morning in the neonatal intensive care unit, normally a busy time in the round-the-clock care of premature babies. But the lights are off and the staff is gone, leaving medical director Dr. Stephen Butler as the last man standing at the Sutter Memorial Hospital NICU.
Can I Be Written Up For This?
What to do when your conduct is questioned
Recently my boss went out of town. Upon her return, she called me and my co-worker into her office to tell us that our HR person emailed her while she was out and said someone in the office complained about us being too loud. Yes, we were joking and laughing, but no one came to me to complain or ask that we lower our voices. Still, my supervisor told me the incident is going on my record. I feel like I’m in kindergarten even asking for advice on this, but can I really be written up for talking loudly?
What Makes You Want to Kill Your Coworkers?
Let us know which bad habits are the worst
Book Review: The Business of Time, Money and Significance
‘Making Money Is Killing Your Business' asks us to rethink how we define success
Time, money and significance: These are the three desires that every entrepreneur strives for in a business. Unfortunately, most find themselves caught in the never-ending pursuit of money, squelching the essence of true business ownership and personal freedom. As a result, the enterprise never delivers time back for the things we enjoy doing or the opportunity to make a significant impact on the world around us.