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Possible Unpaid Wages For Employees

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JohnErick

Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CA

Hello. I currently have a claim for wrongful termination making it's way through the California Dept. of Fair Employment. Can someone tell me if I can also file a claim with the CA Industrial Relations Board while the DFEH case is being investigated?

I was speaking with an attorney last night and after we discussed my wrongful term issue, he brought up something out of the blue. He asked, by the way, did your employer do anything like make the employees clock in after their scheduled start time. Actually, yes. What they did was transition a while back to a time clock that you had to log into from your workstation (instead of the old on the wall clock with a swipe card). Around that time, they also announced that we had to be at our desks at our scheduled start time (mine was 5:30am). But, we were not allowed to turn on our computers until exactly 5:30am. The computers took anywhere from 3-5 minutes on average to boot up (sometimes as much as 7-8 minutes for some reason). However, until they booted up and we logged into the system and pulled up the time clock online application, we could not clock in. So every day, everyone would lose this time!

I realize it's not much time, but with everyone involved, it could be saving the company a lot of money... does anyone know how compensation is figured out in this type of case? I remember an employer not giving us a full lunch break or second break at all, and through a complaint, I ended up getting one hr. pay for every day worked that they failed to give a lunch... or is it just the actual time you're out?

Also, the attorney said I should call the employer and request my time cards for the time periods in question. But they would only show a two week total of hours, but not the actual clock in times. Can I actually request my time cards and a printout of clock in times for every day since that policy started? What if they refuse to provide them? How much time should I give them to comply with such a request? If they do not comply, can a complaint be filed, even though it's speculation? Several other people complained they felt they were losing time daily due to this policy.

Thanks for any help!
 


pattytx

Senior Member
"Payroll records" are one of the pieces of information the employer must provide on request to the employee.

But why aren't you asking your attorney these detailed questions? Isn't that what you're paying him for?

Having said that, you don't have to have the records in hand to file a wage claim with the DLSE. Use your best estimate. The employer is the one who has to prove you DIDN'T work the time you claim you weren't paid for.
 

JohnErick

Member
Wages

Thank you for letting me know about my right to my payroll records. The attorney that asked me about this was an attorney that was refered to me for a consult. It takes him forever to get back to me and I wanted to get on this asap. I've always had pretty good advice from this board in the past so I came here!

One last thing tho if anyone has a moment, this was a policy that was of course, put upon everyone in this particular office. Does the action I take here end up applying to everyone or just myself??

Thank you!
 

pattytx

Senior Member
If you file a wage claim with the DLSE, it's just you. However, the DLSE will likely look back at what they decide in your case, if 42 other employees file similar claims in the not-too-distant future.

If you choose to go the law suit route, it could end up being certified as a class. Your attorney should be able to tell you more about how that happens.
 
W

Willlyjo

Guest
Hello Johnerick

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CA

Hello. I currently have a claim for wrongful termination making it's way through the California Dept. of Fair Employment. Can someone tell me if I can also file a claim with the CA Industrial Relations Board while the DFEH case is being investigated?

I was speaking with an attorney last night and after we discussed my wrongful term issue, he brought up something out of the blue. He asked, by the way, did your employer do anything like make the employees clock in after their scheduled start time. Actually, yes. What they did was transition a while back to a time clock that you had to log into from your workstation (instead of the old on the wall clock with a swipe card). Around that time, they also announced that we had to be at our desks at our scheduled start time (mine was 5:30am). But, we were not allowed to turn on our computers until exactly 5:30am. The computers took anywhere from 3-5 minutes on average to boot up (sometimes as much as 7-8 minutes for some reason). However, until they booted up and we logged into the system and pulled up the time clock online application, we could not clock in. So every day, everyone would lose this time!

I realize it's not much time, but with everyone involved, it could be saving the company a lot of money... does anyone know how compensation is figured out in this type of case? I remember an employer not giving us a full lunch break or second break at all, and through a complaint, I ended up getting one hr. pay for every day worked that they failed to give a lunch... or is it just the actual time you're out?

Also, the attorney said I should call the employer and request my time cards for the time periods in question. But they would only show a two week total of hours, but not the actual clock in times. Can I actually request my time cards and a printout of clock in times for every day since that policy started? What if they refuse to provide them? How much time should I give them to comply with such a request? If they do not comply, can a complaint be filed, even though it's speculation? Several other people complained they felt they were losing time daily due to this policy.

Thanks for any help!

The lost time you may or may not be compensated for has nothing to do with Section 512 of the Labor Code in California. 512 only concerns not getting proper lunch breaks / rest periods for employees who work more than 6 hours per day.

As far as your time card records (which specifically note the exact time you punch in or out), you have a right to subpoena them once you file a case. Go to the appropriate courthouse and ask for a "Subpoena Duces Tecum" and follow the instructions given on the form.

Your former employer has to comply and give you copies of these time cards since this information will help to support your claim if you have one.
 

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