wage and hour lawsuit

Restaurant Workers Fight for More Rights and Better Conditions

March 1, 2016 | by Nassiri Law

A restaurant worker can make a pretty good living if he or she can find at job at the right location. However, as it turns out, most workers are having a tough time finding a sweet spot.

According to a recent news article from the New York Times, the vast majority of food service workers (millions) are still living in poverty, despite working for many hours a week. Further, they are often mistreated by their employers.

The owner of several popular restaurants in New York and in sporting event venues across the country is trying to do his part to change this, but the way he is going about it is to do away with tipping at his establishments. He says that every employee should be paid a decent wage, and this will help to fight what is known as income inequality. Continue Reading ›

New Football Stadium Jobs Promise Might Not Be as Good as Advertised

February 21, 2016 | by Nassiri Law

There has been a lot of news coverage about the Rams moving to Los Angeles and about the new L.A. Rams Stadium. According to a recent news feature from the Los Angles Times, those in support of building the new stadium with taxpayer dollars said that the project would create nearly 10,500 full-time and part-time jobs. This number is not supposed to include the many construction jobs that will be created as the new stadium is being built.

However, some think that these promises of new jobs are not all they are cracked up to be. A recent lawsuit was filed against the company that has a contract to sell all concessions at Levi’s Stadium. Levi’s Stadium is located in Santa Clara and is the stadium where the Super Bowl was just held. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the many low-income workers who accuse their employer of regularly committing labor law violations and taking advantage of them. Continue Reading ›

California Wage Theft Alleged at Bay Area Elder Care Facilities

February 15, 2016 | by Nassiri Law

Authorities in charge of investigating wage theft tend to avoid making generalizations about an entire industry. However, state and federal investigators have recently spoken out forcefully against what they say is a serious and growing problem for California workers: wage theft and other employee abuses at elderly care facilities.

It’s an industry that tends to employ workers who are poor and often illegal. That means they are more likely to be extorted and abused.

Case-in-point: Florinda Yambao. The 63-year-old woman owned numerous residential nursing homes throughout Contra Costa County. Last year, she was convicted of tax fraud, insurance fraud and theft. She had defrauded workers of hundreds of thousands of dollars in pay and then, the court ruled, committed tax fraud in order to cover it all up. She was placed on probation and ordered to pay $1 million in restitution to her victims. Continue Reading ›

California Farm Worker Rights Bill Demanded by Activists

February 13, 2016 | by Nassiri Law

In two of the most critical agricultural counties in California, farm workers banded together with other low-wage workers in the food industry, demanding a “Bill of Rights” that would ensure higher wages and improved treatment.

The workers characterized the bill as a “rule of law” for these workers, who work extremely long hours for little money and are at very high risk of injuries and abuse. The bill is primarily aimed at addressing the struggles of workers in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, just north of Los Angeles.

Most of these problems stem from the fact that nearly half of these workers are undocumented immigrants, which means they live in constant fear they will be reported and returned home, where they may face not just crushing poverty but constant danger. So when they suffer abuse at work, they are more likely to do so silently. Continue Reading ›

Arbitration Mandatory for California Truck Driver Wage Disputes

January 29, 2016 | by Nassiri Law

According to recent news feature from HR.BLR.com, a California employer operates a shipping, distribution, and warehousing business at ports in Southern California, including Los Angeles and Long Beach. The company accepts the shipments at the docks, stores the merchandise, and then has its drivers deliver the goods throughout the state of California.

The California employer hires a number of drivers who they classify as independent contractors. Many of these so-called independent contractors filed claims with the Labor commissioner for the state of California pertaining to wage disputes. In response to the claims, employer filed a motion with the court to make the drivers handles their wage disputes in arbitration rather than with the court. Continue Reading ›

One Wage for Restaurant Workers

January 27, 2016 | by Nassiri Law

If you have never waited tables, you probably do not understand how servers get paid and why tips are very important. In 43 states in the nation, restaurant workers get paid far less than minimum. While the federal minimum wage is $7.25, an employee at restaurant waiting tables probably makes around two dollars and change per hour.

As the worker goes through the day, he or she serves people and gets tips. At the end of a shift, a worker goes into the manager’s office with his or book. The manager tells the server how much money they owe the house for the day, and whatever is left over (tips) the server keeps. However, before he or she can leave, the server must “tip out” other people, like bartenders who make the drinks, bussers, bar backs, hosts and hostesses, and server assistants. This is based on a percentage in sales. Continue Reading ›

Wage and Hour Claims Keep Rising

January 13, 2016 | by Nassiri Law

Washington Post reported there has been a significant increase in wage-and-hour lawsuits in recent years. Wage and hour lawsuits arise under the Fair Labor Standards Act and employees bring these lawsuits when they are paid less than the law requires; when they are not paid overtime properly; when they are incorrectly classified as contractors instead of employers; when they are victims of wage theft; or when other employee-protection laws are violated.

There are many reasons why more wage-and-hour claims are being filed. Employees and employers both need to be aware of the added potential for litigation of these types of claims. Employers must ensure they are complying with all laws related to paying workers so they don’t find their company the defendant in litigation. Workers also need to know what their rights are and how to seek legal remedies when those rights are violated.

Push for $15 Minimum Wage Expected to Spread in 2015

December 26, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

Minimum wage laws have long provided important protections to workers by ensuring that every employee receives a fair amount of pay for a day’s work. Unfortunately, because minimum wage is not tied to inflation and because there are often political disagreements surrounding the raising of the minimum wage, the minimum wage metrics have not kept up with increases in productivity. Today, many people who make minimum wage struggle to earn enough to pay for basic necessities of life. This is true not just in places where the federal minimum wage applies, but also in places like California where there are higher wages but also significantly higher costs of living.

As people on minimum wage struggle to make enough money to support themselves and their families, there has been a growing national movement to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour. There have been regional successes in this effort and USA Today reports that the $15 minimum wage could spread in 2016.

$15 Minimum Wage Could Spread to More Locations in 2016

California Laws on Company Vacation Policies

December 22, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

The start of a new year is often a time when workers start new jobs or get promotions. For employees moving into a new position, moving up in their workplace, or simply putting in another year of service, new benefits may be provided including vacation time. California has strict laws on employer vacation policies and companies need to ensure that they follow the rules. Workers also need to know what they are entitled to, because if an employer fails to follow guidelines for the creation of a legal vacation policy, workers may be able to take legal action.

Palacio v. Jan & Gail’s Care Homes: A right to Meal Breaks for CA Employees

December 11, 2015 | by Nassiri Law

In Palacio v. Jan & Gail’s Care Homes, plaintiff was employed at defendant’s 24-hour residential care facility for developmentally disabled individuals. Defendant owned and operated six of these facilities and employed just less than 50 workers at any given time. There are numerous shifts for workers, so the facility can remain open for 24 hours. The shifts range in length from four hours to ten hours, and some are for part-time workers and others are for full-time employees.

Healthcare regulations in California require these centers to have staff on duty 24 hours a day to provide immediate care to the patients, so they are protected from illness, injury, fire, and any other kind of emergency that may arise at any give time throughout the day or night. One of the ways in which this is accomplished is by the center requiring employees who have direct patient care to work during meal periods. They are told when they are hired that they will be required to each lunch with the residents, and they will be given a free meal that is the same food as provided to the residents. Continue Reading ›