Legal Question in Employment Law in California

Re: Laws regarding status of temporary employees

Generally, employee benefit entitlement rules are controlled by federal, rather than state law. Under federal law, the determination of part-time employee status (ineligible for benefits) is usually controlled either by the number of "Hours of Service" credited to an employee during a stated 12-month period (e.g., 1,000 hours), or by using the "elapsed time" method (e.g., tying the employee's service to the anniversary date of the original hire date.) Unless an employer is exempt from these rules (e.g., government, church, etc.) federal law generally requires an employer to use a "look back" procedure when making an "ineligible for benefits" determination. Thus, hiring, laying-off, and re-hiring may not allow an employer to selective eliminate one or more classes of employees, such as the ones indicated in your question. Ask your employer for a copy of the Summary Plan Description for each employee benefit plan. This booklet should describe in every day language the employee benefit plan eligibility rules. If your employer fails to provide you with a copy of the Summary Plan Description for each employee benefit plan requested, you may have to seek the advice of a local, employment law attorney who is familiar with ERISA to get the answer to your question.