Supreme Court Ruling Limits Reach Of CA's Worker Protection Law

The U.S. Supreme Court is limiting the reach of California's worker protection law. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court ruled the Federal Arbitration Law overrides the California statute, which allows private suits against employers. Federal law requires such private disputes to be settled through arbitration. Labor advocates say the ruling would severely limit workers' ability to avoid the private arbitration process and take their case to court. State Senator Dave Cortese, Chair of the Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee, announced his office is studying the ruling and says he is ready to author legislation in response to the decision.