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Robert Moutrie joined the CalChamber in March 2019 as a policy advocate. He was named a senior policy advocate starting January 1, 2024 in recognition of his efforts on behalf of members. He leads CalChamber advocacy on workplace safety, legal reform and protection, tourism, insurance, unemployment insurance, immigration and education. He is CalChamber's expert on the COVID-19 workplace regulation and was closely involved in its drafting and amendments process at Cal/OSHA. Moutrie has represented clients on matters such as consumer fraud litigation, civil rights, employment law claims, tort claims, and other business-related issues in federal and state courts. He previously served as an associate attorney at the Oakland-based firm of Meyers, Nave, Riback, Silver & Wilson. Moutrie earned a B.A. in political science from the University of California, Berkeley, and a J.D. with honors from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. See full bio.

Cal/OSHA Standards Board Adopts Indoor Heat Illness Prevention Rule

Last week, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board adopted the long-awaited regulations to protect employees working indoors from heat illness. The California Legislature had directed the California...

Job Killer Raising UI Taxes Misses Key Deadline, Dies

A California Chamber of Commerce job killer bill that would have hiked unemployment insurance (UI) taxes failed to meet a key deadline last week...

Senate Committee OKs Job Killer Bill Increasing UI Taxes to Pay Striking Workers

A California Chamber of Commerce job killer bill that will increase unemployment insurance (UI) taxes to subsidize striking workers passed a Senate committee this...

Indoor Heat Rule Moves to Next Step After Unusual Cal/OSHA Board Vote

The proposed regulation to prevent heat illness in indoor workplaces awaits an uncertain fate at the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) following a tempestuous...

UI Proposal Repeat Named First Job Killer of 2024

A bill that seeks to provide striking workers with unemployment insurance (UI) benefits has been tagged a job killer by the California Chamber of...

Cal/OSHA Releases Model Workplace Violence Prevention Plan

This week, Cal/OSHA finally released its much-anticipated model workplace violence prevention plan. Since the passage of last year’s landmark workplace violence prevention law — SB...

Cal/OSHA Passes Aggressive Update to Lead Regulation

On February 15, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board passed a sweeping update to California’s lead regulation despite heavy concerns of feasibility and inaccurate cost estimates...

Author Reintroduces Legislation Providing Unemployment Benefits to Striking Workers

A bill that would provide unemployment insurance (UI) benefits for striking workers was introduced in the California Legislature this week by Senator Anthony Portantino. This...

Unemployment Insurance Tax Rates Up in 2024

For California’s employers, the new year brings new unemployment insurance (UI) tax increases. Governor Gavin Newsom’s annual budget proposal, released January 10, foresees belt tightening...

CalChamber Tags UI Bill SB 799 as a Job Killer

The California Chamber of Commerce has tagged SB 799 (Portantino; D-Burbank) as a job killer, citing the proposal’s requirement for employers to subsidize striking...

Workplace Violence Bill Is Unworkable for Small Employers

A California Chamber of Commerce-opposed bill that increases business costs and establishes a one-size-fits-all workplace violence regulation on all California employers was sent to...

SB 553 Impact Touches Every Industry in California

With this week’s amendments and the upcoming hearing in the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee, it’s worth taking another look at SB 553 (Cortese;...

Formal Stage Begins to Prevent Heat Illness Indoors

The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) has started the formal rulemaking phase of its work on developing regulations to prevent heat...

Cal/OSHA COVID Rule Shifts to ‘Non-Emergency’

After years of rapid change, the potentially final form of California’s COVID-19 regulation has been filed with the Secretary of State and went into...

Cal/OSHA Considers Removing Exclusion Pay Mandate from New COVID Rule

As the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) prepares to vote on the next iteration of California’s COVID-19 emergency regulation, one important...

COVID-19 Regulation: Cal/OSHA Makes Big Changes Ahead of December Vote

California employers may want to get out their measuring tape — because the size (in cubic feet) of a workspace just became an important...

CalChamber Calls for Changes to Nonemergency COVID Draft Rule

The Cal/OSHA Standards Board’s draft proposal to extend the state’s COVID-19 regulation for another two years — with some significant changes from the COVID-19...