What Is Wage Theft?

Wage theft is when an employer or independent contractor (1099) client intentionally fails to pay you money you are owed for work. They may withhold your salary or hourly wages, as well as:

• Tips
• Bonuses
• Commission
• Benefits
• Overtime pay

Employers who engage in wage theft can be quite sneaky about it and may threaten you with termination or demotion if you pursue the money you are owed or expose this practice. If you alert authorities about large-scale wage theft and your employer punishes you for this, it can be considered whistleblower retaliation, which is illegal. But these cheating bosses rely on your fear to keep getting away with picking your and your coworkers’ pockets.

Some common examples of wage theft include:

• Not paying you anything at all for time you’ve worked
• Keeping some or all of the tips you have earned
• Failing to pay you on time or regularly bouncing checks, meaning you get paid later
• Not paying you for sick time or other PTO to which you are entitled
• Failing to pay overtime
• Making you record fewer hours than you actually worked (aka “working off the clock”)
• Forcing you to work through your lunch break but making you clock out
• Not paying commissions or bonuses in your employment contract
• Taking unauthorized deductions from your paycheck
• Refusing to reimburse you for legitimate business expenses, like mileage or compensation for using your personal cell phone for work
• Terminating you and keeping your final paycheck, claiming you owe them money (even if you do)
• Wrongful termination to avoid paying bonuses or commission
• Paying you with a check that bounces (is returned by the bank for insufficient funds)
• Not paying you the legal minimum wage

Wage Theft Is a Big Problem in California

According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, wage theft is a major concern in the state of California. Nearly one-third of workers are paid less than minimum wage. Every week, workers in Los Angeles County alone are cheated out of $26-28 million, according to the UCLA Labor Center. This amounts to over a billion dollars every year.

Many workers in California are hesitant to file wage theft complaints because of their immigration status. However, immigration status is not a factor in determining cases of wage theft. In LA County, the Sheriff’s Department collaborates with numerous other agencies, such as the LA County District Attorney’s Office and the California Department of Industrial Relations, to pursue wage theft and bring law-breaking employers to justice through their Special Victims Bureau-Wage Theft Task Force. Wage theft is not only grounds for a civil lawsuit; it is also a crime.

New Laws Are Intended to Deter and Punish Wage Theft in California

Assembly Bill 1003 was signed by California Governor Gavin Newsom in 2021. It went into effect in January of 2022 and is designed to punish egregious wage theft as grand theft. While cheating employees or independent contractors out of any amount of money is still wage theft, it can be considered grand theft if during any 12-month period:

• Theft of wages in any form (as defined by sections 200 and 350 of the California Labor Code) is greater than $950 for one employee
• Wage theft is greater than $2,350 for two or more employees
  
  

Prosecutors may now charge employers accused of wage theft with either a misdemeanor or a felony. If found guilty, a crooked boss can spend up to a year in jail for a misdemeanor and up to three years in prison for felony wage theft. Fines and restitution of money owed may also be imposed. Property liens may be placed as well against problematic worksites.

How Can an Employment Attorney Help with Wage Theft?

While AB 1003 was definitely a step in the right direction for California workers, there are problems with its enforcement. The state’s Labor Commissioner’s office is chronically understaffed – and this grew worse during the pandemic – so wage theft claims take a long time to be investigated and prosecuted. Although these cases are supposed to be decided in a maximum of 135 days, in reality, they take much longer – years in some instances. This hurts people who are most vulnerable to wage theft, including low-paid workers, people of color, and immigrants.

That’s why many victims of wage theft elect to partner with an employment lawyer. Rather than waiting for the Labor Commissioner’s office, the District Attorney, or the Sheriff’s Department to take action, they file a civil suit against the employer or client, which can move faster.

While reporting your wage theft to the police and state agencies might bring emotional satisfaction, what you may need most is to get the money you are owed to cover your living expenses and debts. A civil suit, or the threat of one, may give you this more rapidly.

An experienced employment attorney, like those at Employee Law Group, can help you decide how to pursue your unique case, whether that’s through the police and the Labor Commissioner’s office, through a civil suit in court, or both. Either way, they can speed up the process and ensure all your paperwork is completed correctly for the best possible outcome. Navigating the state government or court system can be confusing and even frightening for someone without a legal background, and if you have to work, you may not have the time for all the tasks involved. And a missed deadline can mean you lose your rights completely.

Sometimes just the idea of an impending investigation or court trial and you having an attorney to send correspondence is enough to get stubborn employers to settle out of court and pay up. It also sends the message that they shouldn’t attempt stealing wages from other employees or from you in the future, as they are now on the radar for wage theft.

As mentioned above, wage theft sometimes overlaps with other workplace infractions, such as:

• Retaliation (including against whistleblowers)
• Discrimination
• Wrongful termination

At Employee Law Group, we can help you protect your rights when it comes to these matters too. The more complex your situation, the more you need a lawyer to help sort out what’s going on and how you can get what you’re owed.

We offer a free, no-obligation consultation to see if you have a wage theft case. You’re urged to get in touch soon because there is a statute of limitations on pursuing wage theft claims. Call Employee Law Group today at 310-407-7358 or reach out online to let us know how we can help.