Employee Rights

California Employment Law, From Wage Disputes to Wrongful Termination

California gives employees some of the strongest workplace protections in the country, layered across federal, state, and local law. When those protections overlap, courts apply the rule that protects the employee most. Righetti Law enforces these laws for California workers in state and federal court, in arbitration, and before administrative agencies.

The firm handles the full range of California employment claims, from unpaid wages, overtime, and missed breaks to mass layoffs, retaliation, misclassification, wrongful termination, and discrimination. Each area below links to a page that covers it in depth.

Job Loss, Layoffs, and Retaliation

California law limits how and why an employer can end your job, and sets firm rules for what it owes you when it does.

Wrongful Termination

California is an at-will state, but an employer cannot fire you for an illegal reason, such as discrimination, retaliation, or refusing to break the law. When a termination crosses that line, you may be able to recover lost wages, compensation for emotional distress, and more.

Read more: Wrongful termination

California WARN Act

Under California’s WARN Act, employers with 75 or more employees must give at least 60 days’ written notice before a mass layoff, relocation, or closure. When a company lays off a group of workers without that notice, each affected employee may be owed up to 60 days of back pay and benefits.

Read more: California WARN Act

Retaliation and Whistleblower Protection

Under California Labor Code 1102.5, an employer cannot punish you for reporting a legal violation, complaining about unpaid wages, or refusing to take part in something illegal. Discipline or termination within 90 days of certain protected complaints is now presumed to be retaliation, which makes these claims easier for employees to prove.

Read more: Retaliation and whistleblower protection

Final Pay and Waiting Time Penalties

When you are fired, laid off, or quit, California sets strict deadlines for paying every dollar you earned, including accrued vacation. Under Labor Code 203, an employer that pays late owes one day’s wages for each day the final pay is overdue, for up to 30 days.

Read more: Final pay and waiting time penalties

Wages, Overtime, and Pay Disputes

You are entitled to be paid fully and on time for all the work you do.

Overtime Pay

Employees who are not exempt are owed premium pay for hours worked beyond the daily and weekly limits set by California law. Employers that miscalculate the regular rate of pay or refuse to pay overtime can owe significant back wages and penalties.

Read more: Overtime pay

Local Minimum Wage and Living Wage Violations

Many California cities set minimum wages above the state rate, and living wage ordinances require higher pay from employers that receive public contracts or subsidies. When more than one rate applies, you are owed the highest one. Employers that operate across several cities frequently pay the wrong rate.

Read more: Local minimum wage and living wage violations

Pay for All Time Worked

Off-the-clock work, time rounding that favors the employer, and unpaid duties before and after a shift are common ways workers lose pay they have already earned. California law requires payment for every hour worked under the employer’s control.

Read more: Pay for all time worked

Bonuses and Commissions (Incentive Pay)

When a commission or bonus plan is unclear, or an employer withholds incentive pay you earned, the amount in dispute can be substantial. These plans must follow specific rules under California law, and ambiguities are often read in the employee’s favor.

Read more: Bonuses and commissions

Wage Statement Violations

Under California Labor Code 226, your itemized pay stub must include specific information, and you are generally entitled to receive it on paper. Missing or inaccurate wage statements subject the employer to damages and penalties even when your wages were otherwise paid in full.

Read more: Wage statement violations

Tool and Expense Reimbursements

Under California Labor Code 2802, employers must reimburse the necessary expenses you incur to do your job, including mileage, business use of a personal cell phone, required tools, and home office costs. This right cannot be waived, even by agreement.

Read more: Tool and expense reimbursements

Discrimination and Leave Rights

California protects you from being treated differently because of who you are, and from being punished for taking leave the law guarantees.

Age Discrimination

California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act protects employees 40 and older at any employer with five or more employees, which reaches far more workplaces than federal law. Age does not have to be the only reason for a firing, layoff, or demotion. It is enough that age was a substantial motivating factor.

Read more: Age discrimination

Disability and ADA Discrimination

California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act protects employees with disabilities more broadly than the federal ADA, and it requires employers to provide reasonable accommodation and to engage in a good-faith interactive process. If you were denied accommodation, harassed, or fired because of a medical condition, your rights may have been violated.

Read more: Disability and ADA discrimination

Leave Rights

California guarantees job-protected family and medical leave under CFRA, up to four months of Pregnancy Disability Leave, and bereavement leave at employers with as few as five employees, and nearly every employee earns paid sick leave. Denying leave you qualify for, or disciplining or firing you for taking it, violates the law.

Read more: Leave rights

Breaks, Scheduling, and Working Conditions

California regulates not only your pay, but the conditions you work under.

Meal Periods

Most employees are entitled to an uninterrupted, duty-free meal period, and to a premium hour of pay for each day the employer fails to provide one. Late, short, or skipped meal breaks are among the most common wage-and-hour violations.

Read more: Meal periods

Rest Breaks

California requires paid rest breaks based on the number of hours worked, and owes a premium hour of pay when those breaks are denied, shortened, or interrupted.

Read more: Rest breaks

Reporting Time

When you report to work as scheduled but are sent home early or given little or no work, you may be owed reporting-time pay for part of the shift you expected.

Read more: Reporting time

On-Call Time

Time you spend under your employer’s control can be compensable even when you are not actively working. Some on-call, standby, and travel time must be paid under California law.

Read more: On-call time

Seating Regulations

California law requires employers to provide suitable seating when the nature of the work reasonably permits it. Forcing employees to stand unnecessarily can be a violation that affects an entire workforce.

Read more: Seating regulations

Classification and Enforcement

How you are classified, and how violations are pursued, can determine what you are owed.

Exemption Classifications

Employers sometimes label employees as exempt to avoid paying overtime and providing breaks. If your actual duties and pay did not meet California’s legal test for an exemption, you may have been misclassified and owed substantial back pay.

Read more: Exemption classifications

Independent Contractor Misclassification

California presumes that anyone paid to perform work is an employee. Under AB 5 and the ABC test, a company that pays you on a 1099 must prove you meet all three parts of the test. If it cannot, it may owe you the overtime, breaks, expense reimbursement, and other protections it withheld.

Read more: Independent contractor misclassification

Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) Penalties

The Private Attorneys General Act lets an employee pursue civil penalties on behalf of the state for Labor Code violations affecting themselves and their coworkers. It is one of the most powerful tools available for holding California employers accountable.

Read more: Private Attorney General Act penalties

Why Work With Righetti Law

Free, confidential consultation. It costs nothing to speak with an experienced employment lawyer, and that conversation often helps workers make an informed decision about their rights.

Experience and results. Over the past three decades the firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for employees and consumers from some of the largest companies in the country.

Statewide reach. Righetti Law is admitted in every state and federal court in California, as well as the Federal Circuit and the Fourth and Seventh Circuits.

Contingency representation. You pay nothing unless the firm wins, and a senior attorney reviews every case within 24 hours.

Recent Settlements

The firm has recovered substantial settlements and judgments for California employees and consumers, including cases involving failure to provide seating, meal and rest break violations, and employee misclassification.

Schedule Your Free Consultation

If you have questions about whether your employer has violated your rights, Righetti Law offers a complimentary and confidential consultation. Your conversation will be private, and the firm will not contact your employer.

Call our firm at 415-983-0900 or complete the online contact form to speak with an experienced California employment attorney.