What Are The Wage Claim Penalties In California?

Every employee, regardless of circumstances, is entitled to a fair wage that is distributed on time and in the manner agreed upon. While this should be a basic right that business owners should adhere to, it is unfortunately not the case. If your Californian employer has failed to distribute the wages that you are entitled to, not only will they need to cough that up, but also pay a penalty for their violation of the law. California, in particular, is known for having particularly stiff penalties. These penalties will depend on your legal claim as well as other factors. In this article, we break down what exactly are the wage claim penalties in California and how you can better secure your rightful damages.

Unpaid Wages and Back Pay

Back pay and unpaid wages are generally known as ‘damages’ rather than ‘penalties.’ In simpler terms, they are the amounts your employer should have paid you, not any additional punitive amounts. These can also be considered compensation for the losses that you have suffered through the actions of your employer. This can involve your salary, overtime pay, and other forms of monetary compensation.

It is especially important to consider work that was done ‘off the clock’ or considered overtime, as these might be entitled to higher rates since California has a daily overtime standard. So long as you have worked more than 40 hours in a week or more than seven consecutive days, you might be entitled to one and a half or two times your hourly rate.

Missed Rest and Meal Breaks

For every four hours, employees are entitled to a paid ten-minute break. After five hours, employees are also entitled to an unpaid 30-minute meal break. If you work an additional five hours, employees are then entitled to one more unpaid 30-minute meal break. These are regulations mandated by Californian law. If these meal and rest breaks are not provided, the employee is entitled to collect penalties of an hour’s rate equivalent for every break missed. For example, if your hourly rate is $10 and your employer neglected to provide you with two meal breaks, you would be entitled to a penalty of $20.

Minimum Wage Claims

In the case of minimum wage claims, Californian employees might be entitled to liquidated damages. Liquidated damages refer to the types of compensation given when damages can be hard to quantify or measure. This applies to minimum wage claims as it presumes that failing to pay an employee the basic minimum wage would cause additional damages and losses due to the lack of appropriate compensation.

What this means is that your employer will first need to pay you the damages incurred, which is the difference between your hourly rate and the minimum wage. They will then be required to pay a penalty or liquidated damages equivalent to the amount which was owed.

Trying to understand the wage claim penalties system in California and rightfully claim the amounts you owe can be difficult and frustrating. Especially if multiple types of penalties overlap, it can be hard to estimate the best way to obtain the best amount of compensation. In order to secure your case, work with an attorney with experience in unpaid wages or wage claim penalties lawsuits.