Wage theft is a serious issue in California. Here’s who it impacts most, how to get help
Wage theft – a term used to describe pay violations – occurs at an alarmingly high rate in California and it continues to be a prevalent issue within the Central Valley’s key industries.
The industries in California that received the highest number of citations for wage theft violations included the agricultural, restaurant, construction, retail and warehouse sectors, totaling more than $77.4 million in stolen wages for the 2018-19 fiscal year alone, according to a report from the Labor Commissioner’s Office.
While wage theft affects workers across all sectors, the burden falls heaviest on California’s roughly 4.9 million low-wage workers, who live paycheck-to-paycheck and are already struggling to stay financially afloat. Many immigrants, who make up 40.5% of the state’s low-wage workforce, are particularly vulnerable due to their immigration status.
For many undocumented immigrants, identifying and reporting wage theft can be daunting due to a fear of deportation. Many employers take advantage of a worker’s immigration status and use it against them as a form of intimidation, said Victor Narro, project director at the UCLA Labor Center, where he focuses on immigrant rights and low-wage workers.
“The problem is, undocumented workers are already working under the fear of deportation,” Narro said. “But it’s kind of a double layer of exploitation, because by already working in these industries – whether you have legal status or not – you will be vulnerable to wage theft. Here in California, it’s a crisis.”
That’s why it’s important that an individual, regardless of their immigration status, know their legal rights and what pay and other benefits they may be entitled to, Narro added.
Here’s how to seek help.
What is wage theft?
Wage theft is a broad term to define any situation where an employer denies wages or another benefit that an employee has earned, Narro said. An employee is entitled to minimum wage, overtime pay, worker’s compensation if injured and access to meal and rest breaks. Common situations where wage theft occurs include:
Off-the-clock violations: Being told to work or perform work-related tasks before or after a shift
Pay violations: Not paying overtime to nonexempt employees who worked more than 8 hours a day or more than 40 hours per week. Paying less than the minimum wage. Not paying worker’s compensation to employees injured on the job.
Meal and rest break violations: Denying workers legal rest and meal breaks during shifts
Wage deductions: Collecting gratuities, denying employees cost reimbursements or requiring employees to pay for work-related expenses like uniforms
What legal rights do I have as an undocumented worker?
Even if an individual is not legally authorized to work in the United States, they are protected from wage theft under the Fair Labor Standards Act. This means an undocumented worker is entitled to overtime pay, minimum wage and workers compensation benefits if they are injured on the job. To learn more about a worker’s legal rights, regardless of immigration status, go to the Labor Commissioner’s Office website here.
What do I do if I think I’m a victim of wage theft?
Juanita Perez is a community worker with California Rural Legal Assistance, a nonprofit organization that connects the migrant workforce to resources. The first step a person can take involves seeking legal advice by calling an organization like California Rural Legal Assistance that provides free or low-cost legal services to low-income workers, she said. Not all people may be eligible for free services, but there are exceptions. She also said the organization will help ineligble individuals find other resources.
“We would encourage everyone to go ahead and call us – specifically ag farmworkers,” she said. “We do have restrictions on who we can advise and counsel and that’s just the nature of our program. But if a person is not eligible, and they are experiencing wage theft, we would connect them to another legal aid or we would make sure that they basically fall in the right hands.”
California Rural Legal Assistance has four locations across the Central Valley. Submit a contact form to contact the organization at its website here.
- Fresno: 3747 E. Shields Ave. The office can be reached at 559-441-8721
- Modesto: 1020 15th St., STE 20. The office can be reached at 209-577-3811
- Madera: 126 North B St. The office can be reached at 559-674-5671
Delano: 601 High Street Suite C. The office can be reached at 661-725-4350
Other legal service providers include:
Legal Aid at Work has multiple Workers’ Rights Clinics across the Central Valley, including in Fresno, Merced and Visalia. Location will be confirmed over the phone while scheduling an appointment. Each office can be reached at 559-570-1200. The Central Valley Workers Rights Hotline can be contacted at 209-497-4399.
Central California Legal Services has three locations. Each office can be reached at 800-675-8001 to determine eligibility. A client application form can be found at its website here.
- Fresno: 2115 Kern Street, STE 200
- Merced: 1640 “N” Street, STE 200
- Visalia: 2025 W Feemster Avenue
In addition to seeking legal assistance, a worker can also file a wage claim with the Labor Commissioner’s Office. An individual does not need to reveal their immigration status to file a claim.
Download a claim form at the website here, complete and print it. Make sure to attach all relevant documents, including time records, paychecks and pay stubs, bounced paychecks, notice of employment information and/or collective bargaining agreements.
The claim can be filed online, or by email, mail or in person. Those living in Fresno and the surrounding region can mail or hand-deliver a claim form to the Labor Commissioner’s Wage Claim office located at 770 East Shaw Avenue, STE 222. The office can be reached at 559-244-5340. Information for other district offices can be found at its website here.
What can I do if I don’t have a paycheck or pay stubs to prove I am a victim of wage theft?
All workers in California are entitled to a pay stub or wage statement every time they are paid wages, according to the Labor Commissioner’s Office. Still, many employees are illegally paid under-the table, said Perez, of the California Rural Legal Assistance. But a worker should not be discouraged from seeking legal assistance or filing a wage claim if they do not have pay stubs, she added. A worker will still need to provide credible evidence to show employment, she said, but that could include self-documentation of hours worked, an employer’s contact information, notes, or a coworker’s testimony.
“You did the work, you got to be paid for that,” she said. “As long as you can provide credible evidence that you worked that time or you deserve those wages– that’s all that’s required.”
Will my employer retaliate against me if I’m undocumented and I file a wage claim against them?
Retaliation in many cases is inevitable, said Narro, of the UCLA Labor Center. But a worker can report an employer who they suspect is retaliating against them by filing a retaliation claim with the Labor Commissioner’s Office, he added.
“Employers, the majority of time, will engage in retaliation against these workers for speaking up,” he said. “Workers who suffer from retaliation could report it and then that triggers a separate complaint against the employer. The more workers are aware of their rights, the better able they are to assess the situation so they can report violations.”
Workers who were fired, demoted or punished for reporting a labor law violation can go to the Labor Commissioner’s Office here to file a retaliation complaint.
This story was originally published February 8, 2022 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Wage theft is a serious issue in California. Here’s who it impacts most, how to get help."