While your employer denies paying your rightful amount, immediately consult the unpaid wages attorney of your area. He will help you to get back the amount; your employer did not pay you. The unpaid wages attorney can help you to recover your:
-Earned bonus and promised bonus
-Vacation
-Earned wages
-Salary and
-Commissions

There are several situations when an employer violates the law and stops paying an employee:
Simply withholds your payment
Several times the employers disagree to adhere to the payment policies of the written employment contract. They try to cheat the employers in this way. You have all right to contact the unpaid wages attorney in such a situation. He can help you to revive your wage, following the legal procedure.

Denies making your final payment
When you leave a company, an employer can refuse to pay your last moth fees. He can continuously delay paying off your rightful amount over and over again. Do not ignore the situation. Immediately seek help from the unpaid wages attorney. He can help you to get back your payment at the earliest.

Refuse to pay your overtime fees
Often the employees are given huge work pressure, and the employers do not bother to pay them extra. At the time of making payments, they offer usual wage amount to the employees, deducing the extra amount. The unpaid attorney can help you to come out of the situation.

Does not pay in the proper time
It is often common in the industry that the employers delay in paying the employees. The employees have the notion that, they have every right to use their employers to the optimum level. In reality, it is not always true. You can expect to get your hard earned money at the correct time. Consult the unpaid wages attorney if required.

Employment contracts are always legal. Both the employee and the employer should adhere to this strictly. If an employee agrees to work for a period at a particular wage, the employee should pay the proper amount to his employee. Whenever the employer fails to pay his employee, it is known as “unpaid wage.” You can always take legal action against an employer. Approach an unpaid wages attorney and take legal action against your employer. Whether you are a non-exempt employee or a contracted or exempt, all types of employees are protected by US Employment Laws.

Before you decide to consult an attorney, remember to collect all your papers and make a detailed list of all the hours worked in each and every week in which you have a claim you are entitled to an overtime pay.

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California has long has a reputation of one of the states that has most protective of employee rights, and all businesses in California or employing California resident must be aware of the laws governing overtime pay. All time during which an employee is “under the control of the employer,” including daily work duties, closing duties, uniform changes, and other job-related tasks is to be compensated at the full hourly rate. As a California employee, it is important to know your rights and laws.

California law requires not only that employees pay 1.5 times your standard hourly rate after 40 hours in a week as mandated by federal law, but also after 8 hours in a single day and on the 7th consecutive day of work and beyond. Employers must also pay double the standard hourly rate after 12 working hours in a single 24 hour period, after 8 hours on a 7th consecutive day of work, and under other circumstances such as state and national holidays. Employees on “standby” or “on call” status must also be paid for their commitment whether they are called to active duty or not.

State law provides very clear outlines of how workers are to be compensated for their time as well as a very specific set of exemptions. The major exempted classes are Executive, Administrative, Professional and Computer Professional categories, and in the view of the law these classes of employee are paid a salary for completing their job duties as opposed to an hourly rate for their time.

Exempted employees are not covered by the standard California overtime pay law, and must meet a number of requirements in order to become exempt. An Executive Exemption is only triggered when an employee both makes at least $640 weekly and meets certain requirements on level of authority within the company.

Administrative exemptions are commonly limited to the supporting fields of companies such as human resources, finance and legal departments, and even within these areas an employee must hold influence on significant matters before becoming ineligible for overtime, making this one of the most difficult exemptions to prove.

The Professional exemption only applies to employees holding advanced degrees, recognized merit in directly creative artistic pursuits, or licensure by the State of California to practice in a field such as law, engineering or accounting. This exemption also requires that an employee have a broad measure of control over day to day duties as well as a high level of operating freedom.

California is well-known for its high-tech culture, and the design of the Computer Professional exemption reflects this. Only computer programmers who play a central role in design and analysis of software are exempt from the overtime law, with most technicians who spend 50 percent or more of their time writing code for specific tasks entitled to overtime pay under California state law.

The California state overtime law is intended to limit abuses of employee freedom by companies, outlining acceptable compensation and time-tracking to protect their rights. Exemptions from this protection are extremely limited, and the burden of proving the validity of an exemption always falls on the employer.

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All employees must be able to know what their wages or salaries are a well as the exact amounts they take home when all deductions are factored. There are some paycheck deductions like social security and health insurance premiums that are legal but on the other hand, there are deductions that are very illegal. In the city of California, employers aren’t allowed to deduct several expenses from employees’ paychecks

* Items that can never be deducted

There is a basic rule in California stipulating that the employer must pay for all normal costs of running the business. He must never pass such expenses to the employee. Such expense must never be deducted from employees’ paychecks. These types of expenses include;

(a) Business expenses

Employees must be compensated for any loss that they suffer while doing any job. Employees must never deduct these business expenses from the paychecks of their employees. Such examples include gifts for clients, business meals, tolls etc.

(b) Cash shortages and breakages

An employer must never charge an employee for the losses that are caused by carelessness on the side of the employee. For instance, if an employee drops glasses in a restaurant business, the loss will be incurred by the business

(c) Tools and equipment

The employer must reimburse the employee for the items the employee purchases while carrying out business duties. Such item might comprise of hand tools or even uniforms

(d) Licensing and bonding

If employees must be licensed or bonded to work for employers, the employers must foot the costs. On the same note if an employer wants his employees to take fingerprints or even photographs, he must pay for the costs of all those items. Employees who are required to undergo medical exams as a condition for employment must be reimbursed such costs

(e) Tips

In California, tips are given to employees. Tips are not part and parcel of employees’ salaries. Tip sharing and pooling is allowed but employers and their managers must never participate

* Items that may be deducted

Employers may deduct expenses from employees’ paychecks only if they are allowed by the federal law or through collective bargaining agreements. Employers are also allowed to deduct health insurance premiums but they can only do this after getting an authorization from their employees in writing. This means that employees do not have the power to deduct any amount of money even if they owe such employees money

If employers advance money to their employees, they cannot make deduction for such advances unless such employees authorize in writing

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You need to understand California wage laws for tipped employees. What is a tip? You may be wondering under which conditions you will be considered to have given out a tip and the conditions where you will be deemed to have paid for your services. A tip is simply the amount a customer gives out to an employee due to exceptional services. The client has to give out the tips without any force or obligation for him to hand over the tips.

California wage laws for tipped employees

A tip is the sole property of the employee

The law in California prohibits employers from taking gratuity of any amount left to customers as tips. The section 351 of the labor laws in California stipulates that the entire amount which will be left as a tip to the employee should be handed over to the deserving employee. If the customer leaves the amount to be deducted from the credit card, then the full amount should be given to the employee upon processing.

The employer may not deduct the cost of credit card transaction from gratuities. 

If your company allows the customer to pay you a tip via a credit card, then the whole amount which will be indicated on the credit card as a tip should be given to you at the time the credit transaction will proceed and paid to you by the credit companies. The employer is not allowed to deduct any amount as processing fees.

CA employers may not credit tips against wages to meet the requirements of minimum wage laws

The tips the customers offer you should not be used to pay you to meet the minimum wage amounts set in California. The tips are a show of appreciation due to the services you offered the customer, and the amount should not be deducted from your salary or used to pay you wages.

Employers are allowed to impose a mandatory tip pooling policy. 

Sometimes the customer will leave a tip to the waiter. But, for the server to access the tip, the staff at the kitchen who cooked the food or the host at the front of the restaurant also contributed to the services. The employer can impose tip pooling where the tip will be shared equality to all staff as a way of trying to be fair to other employees who do not come into direct contact with the customers, but they had a great contribution to the company. Managers who have rights to fire and hire are not allowed to share the tips.

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If you’ve got an employer who has failed to pay your wage, refused to offer you rest breaks or meal breaks or violated any other wage law, you should consider filing a wage claim. However, before filing a wage claim, it is important that you ensure that you are informed about this subject of interest. Basically, researching about how to file a wage claim is one important factor you must adhere to if you want your employer not to violate your rights pertaining wage payment. This write- up will offer several factors that you need to know if your rights are being violated and thus you want to file a wage claim.

Reasons that Can Make you File a Wage Claim

An employee can file a personal wage claim in order to recover the following;

* Unpaid wages including bonuses, commissions and overtime.

* Not receiving a final pay- check

* Non- reimbursed business expenses.

* Liquidated damages as a result of not receiving minimum wage for the hours worked.

* Unauthorized deductions from paychecks.

How to File a Wage Claim

In the US, You are qualified to file a claim should your employer violate any state or federal law regarding your wages or work hours. For you to file a claim, you will be required to complete an Initial Claim or Report form and file it with DLSE i.e. Department of Labor Standards Enforcement. Generally, the form will require you to fill in information about you, your employer, your work schedule as well as what penalties or wages you’ re claiming,

Depending on the type of penalties or wages you’ re claiming, you may be required also to fill out other supplemental forms including:

^ DLSE Form 55 incase you’ re having varying or irregular work hours

^ DLSE Form 155 in case you’ re claiming unpaid commissions

^ DLSE Vacation Payment Schedule if you’re claiming unpaid vacation

You can either file the forms in person or by mail and send them to any local based DLSE office’s website.

Documents you Should Have for you to Qualify to File a Wage Claim

#1: Time Records:-

This involves copies you kept showing how many hours or days you worked.

#2: Pay stubs:-

This involves a copy of pay stubs you’ve received during the duration of time you’re claiming unpaid wages.

#3: Bounced Checks:-

These are copies of checks you received from your employer that bounced as a result of insufficient funds.

Last, but not least, this information is only a little of what you require knowing before filing a wage claim. Ensure that you click https://www.california-labor-law-attorney.com/ if you want to be informed more about filing a wage claim.

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A good number of employees rarely understand why the money earned is not always 100% of the amount that an employer promises. This is simply because they do not take time to examine their pay stub. An employee’s pay stub is simply a part of the paycheck. The pay stub contains a lot of details about the salary received. Some of the details include:

The two categories of pay found on a paycheck

Gross pay

This is the initial amount earned by an employee prior to implementation of deductions by an employer.

Net pay

This is the amount that an employee is left with after all the necessary deductions have been made.

The deductions made from a paycheck

Medicare deduction

It is meant to serve Medicare insurance needs of an employee. It is computed as 1.45% of employees’ paycheck. The employer also aids the employee in addressing this deduction by contributing 1.45%.

Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) or Social security tax

This tax is levied to guarantee employees of monthly social security payment when they retire. For this to be realized, employees must be deducted 6.2% from their paycheck. The employer is also mandated to pay 6.2% to facilitate the social security of the employee.

Life insurance deductions

In some cases, the employer may furnish the employee with a life insurance policy. In such an occurrence, the employee may be required to pay a certain amount from the annual salary to keep the policy operational.

Federal tax (FIT tax or Fed TX)

This is the tax that an employee owes the federal government.

State tax (SIT or St TX)

This is the amount imposed on employees by some states. It is deducted from the paycheck.

Local tax

It is not a common type of tax but it imposed on employees residing in certain regions or counties.

Year to date

This section of the paycheck indicates the amount paid for various deductions at any time of the year.

Other deductions include:

Miscellaneous deductions

They take the form of union dues, charitable deductions and other stated mandated deductions.

Leave duration

The paycheck might also include details concerning sick and vacation leave that an employee is entitled to. Information about the number of time each kind of leave has been utilized is also indicated and the remaining duration.

Finally, employees need to make efforts to comprehend all the information shown on their paycheck. The information is necessary in helping them understand how their net pay is arrived at, how they will budget for it and the benefits they are exposed to as a result of paying for the deductions.

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Individual employees of private companies who are not members of a collective bargaining unit can file a claim for unpaid wages, vacation pay, and expenses incurred on behalf of the employer. The first step is to file a wage and hour claim with Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) division which is part of the Department of Industrial Relations. The DLSE has provided specific claim forms that are easy to use, and these can be found atdir.ca.gov/dlse/HowToFileWageClaim.htm. This website will also identify the documentation you will need to submit to with your claim. You can file your claim at a DLSE office near you. The locations can be found in the website the same website. Generally, you have one year to file a claim, but you may have up to four years in some situations.

The Labor Commissioner has established procedures for investigating wage complaints, and these procedures may include either an informal conference or an administrative hearing. The informal conference is held to try and resolve the claim. A deputy labor commissioner conducts the conference. If the claim cannot be resolved at the conference then the claim will proceed to an administrative hearing presided over by an administrative law judge. The administrative hearing is also informal, but the there are rules about the evidence that can be submitted. The hearings are held in a conference room environment. See the important points below for further information to help you.

If you believe you need to have certain employer records to support your claim at the hearing, you can ask the DLSE to issue a subpoena for them. You will need to fill out a form requesting a subpoena to be issued by the DLSE. Refer to:dir.ca.gov/dlse/forms/DLSE_Form_564-Info_for_Subpoena.pdf. This request must be filed not less than 15 business days before the hearing date.

Here are some important points to keep in mind:

– You can bring an attorney or other representatives with you to the conference and the hearing. The employer has the same right.

– You do not have to be a citizen or even a legal alien to file a claim.

– If your claim goes to a hearing, you may bring witnesses to testify in support of your claim.

– The administrative hearing officer will render a decision after the hearing, and you will be notified by mail.

– The decision will be filed with a court, and you will be advised of the legal remedies you have to enforce the decision.

– If either you or the employer do not like the decision, then you can appeal it to the court having jurisdiction. A copy of the appeal must be given the Labor Commissioner’s office.

– A translator will be provided for you at the conference or the hearing if you need one.

– The local DLSE office can be very helpful in explaining the claim process.

If you, or someone you know, are facing legal issues in the workplace United Employees Law Group has answers, Call Today for your free and confidential case review. Please feel free to CONTACT US with any questions about this blog or your exact situation.

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As per the Department of Labor of the US Government, employers have the right to reduce the working hours of their employees. The reason should obviously be nondiscriminatory in nature, otherwise you can sue your employer. As per the law, your employer is also not obliged to give you any prior notice regarding the change in schedule. However, the law is only valid for adults. The law doesn’t give employers the right to increase the working hours of an under 16 employee. It will be a direct violation to the child labor laws, and they can fall in legal trouble.

Wage Laws: Although giving a notice is not compulsory, but employers should pay the minimum wage to all the employees. They also have to comply with the regulations regarding overtime payment. If you have signed a wage agreement with your employer at the time of employment, then he or she is bound to follow that.

State Laws: In many states, if employers doesn’t give notice, then they will have to suffer. In California for example, there is a system called “reporting time pay”. When any employee comes to work and finds out that his or her working hours have been reduced, then he or she is entitled to this payment. However, this payment is only valid, if your working hours have been reduced by half or more. For example, lets say that you worked for 8 hours every day. But your employer has reduced your working hours to just 3 hours every day. Since your working hours have been reduced by more than half, you are entitled to receive the payment. However, this ” reporting time pay” is not valid in some cases. If your employee gives notice beforehand, then you won’t get it. It is also not valid in case of natural disasters or if you show up to work under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

In Connecticut also, employers will have to pay a fixed amount of wage if they doesn’t send notice to their employees. Apart from that, some states like Pennsylvania has made it compulsory to give prior notice.

Labor laws can be very complex. For a person with a non legal background, it can be very difficult to understand these laws. They also change very frequently. Hence, it is advisable that you consult a legal expert to get a grasp of these laws. United Employees Law Group can help you out in this regard.

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