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California Minority Counsel Program Presents. The DLSE’s Growing Arsenal What Every Employer Needs to Know About the Wage Theft Protection Act and the DLSE’s Criminal Investigation Unit. PANELISTS: Frank Capetillo , Sr. Special Investigator, DIR, DLSE
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California Minority Counsel ProgramPresents The DLSE’s Growing Arsenal What Every Employer Needs to Know About the Wage Theft Protection Act and the DLSE’s Criminal Investigation Unit PANELISTS: Frank Capetillo, Sr. Special Investigator, DIR, DLSE Amber M. Grayhorse, Senior Associate, Nossaman LLP Tim Lykowski, Sr. VP of Employment Litigation, Fox Group Legal Dept. MODERATED BY: Aundrea L. Smith, Associate, Sanchez & Amador LLP Hosted & Sponsored by
What Will We Cover? • Wage Theft Protection Act’s Written Wage & Hour Notice to New Employees • DLSE’s Criminal Investigation Unit 2
Wage & Hour Notice: Labor Code § 2810.5 (1/1/12) • At the time of hiring, an employer shall provide each employee a written notice, in the language the employer normally uses to communicate employment-related information to the employee, basic employment information • Labor Commissioner must have a template • Employer shall notify employees in writing of any changes to the information within 7 calendar days of the changes
Wage Notice: What Must I Include? • All rates & basis (hourly, shift, daily, weekly, salary, commission, etc.) of pay, incl. O/T rates • Minimum wage allowances, if any, including meal and lodging allowances • Regular payday • Employer’s Legal Name, incl. “dba” names
Wage Notice: What Must I Include? • Physical and mailing address of employer’s main office/principal place of business • Employer’s phone number • Contact info of employer’s W/C insurance carrier • Any other info Labor Commissioner deems material or necessary
What does the DLSE Require as “Material & Necessary”? • Information re staffing agency • Information re written agreements to providing the rate • No longer have to try to respond to whether Employment Agreement is Oral or Written
Who Must Provide Wage Notices? All employers who “engage another . . . to do something for the benefit of the employer or a third person” in California. • Best Practices: • Any employer that has employees in California should provide notice to California employees • Any employer in California should provide notice to all employees • Including: • Private employers • Private schools • Non-profit corporations (CMCP) • Private sub-contractors
Who Must Provide Wage Notices? Exceptions: • Public employees • Exempt employees • Most employees covered by collective bargaining agreements
When Must the Notice be Given? At the time of hiring • Hiring date vs. start date • No later than the start date Best Practice: Give the Notice to existing employees if you haven’t already?
Do I have to Update the Notice? Employers must notify employees in writing of any changes to the info in the Notice within 7 calendar days of the change Unless: • All changes are reflected in timely wage statement • Employer provides notice of changes in another writing required by law w/in 7 days
What if my Employees Speak Different Languages? Notice must be given in language normally used to communicate employment related information Labor Commissioner has templates in six languages: • English • Vietnamese • Chinese • Korean • Tagalog • Spanish
What Wage Notice Records Must I Maintain? • Record of Notices provided • Can be electronic • Best Practices: • Acknowledgement of Receipt • But cannot require employees to sign Acknowledgement • Maintain Acknowledgement for 4 years after termination
Wage Notice:What Else do I Need to Know? • DLSE templates and FAQs: http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/FAQs-NoticeToEmployee.html • Not necessary to use template, but Notice must contain all info in DLSE’s template • If you prepare your own Notice form, it must be a free standing form
Criminal Investigation Unit (CIU) • Established Feb. 27, 2012 • Designed to investigate employers who perpetrate wage theft and other criminal activities against workers • Peace officers make investigations & arrests for L.C. violations
What is CIU Doing? • Arrest employers for violating Penal Codes and Labor Codes. • Cite employers into criminal court for violating Labor codes and Penal Codes. • File criminal charges with the district attorney’s office and other prosecutors (including city attorneys). • Serve subpoenas. • Obtain and serve inspection warrants. • Obtain and serve search warrants. • Obtain arrest warrants for employers. • Conduct surveillance.
What is CIU’s Focus? • Flagrant mistreatment of workers • Not innocent violators • W/C violations • Theft of labor • Payment of wages with bounced checks • Unlicensed farm labor contractors/ Garment mfr’s • Public works projects kickbacks • Minor worker violations
What Else do I Need to Know about the DLSE? • Increased enforcement efforts • August 7, 2012: Joint DLSE/DOL Inspection of Garment Manufacturing Businesses, Downtown Los Angeles • L.C. Julie Su is 1st L.C. recognized as Top Labor & E/t Attorney in California • Increased efforts to enforce citations • Most common violations: • Failure to carry workers’ compensation • Failure to pay overtime compensation
Thank you! For any questions, please contact: Amber M. Grayhorse agrayhorse@nossman.com www.nossaman.com 213.612.7864 Aundrea L. Smith smith@sanchez-amador.com www.sanchez-amador.com 213.955.7206