If you are an employee of a company that subcontracts services for another business, you may be interested to know that if your company fails to adhere to California laws regarding wages, breaks, and so forth, you may be entitled to damages from multiple sources. A case in point involves the Cheesecake Factory, which contracted with Americlean Janitorial Services Corporation for cleaning services. Americlean then hired subcontractors Magic Touch Commercial Cleaning. Magic Touch failed to pay minimum wages, denied workers rest breaks, and ignored overtime rules. When the California Labor Commissioner’s Office got wind of the problem, they wound up assessing the three companies for a combined total for $4.57 million in fines.
California Law Butts up Against Specifics of This Subcontractors Case
According to California law workers are entitled to specific rest and meal breaks, including:
- A 10-minute break for every four hours on shift;
- These rest breaks should be as close to the middle of the work period as possible;
- They must be in addition to toilet breaks;
- Meal periods must be provided for every five hours worked, and must be a minimum of 30 minutes long;
At three different California Cheesecake Factory franchises, cleaning personnel were required to work daily shifts without appropriate rest and meal breaks. They typically worked roughly 10 hours of overtime weekly, but were paid only a flat rate for eight hours of work each day.
Businesses are responsible for workplace violations committed by their subcontractors according to California law SB 588, putting Cheesecake Factory, Americlean, and Magic Touch all in a precarious position. Workers received almost $4 million. Liquidated damages were calculated based on the money underpaid in wages plus interest, in addition to a full hour of pay for each day workers were denied their 10-minute rest breaks. Furthermore, the companies shared over $500,000 in civil fines.
Thanks to SB588, big corporations can no longer hide behind contracts with smaller companies. When violations occur under their umbrella, they share in culpability with their subcontractors. The Labor Commission is streamlining procedures to speed up collections on unpaid wages. Employers are now required to post bond for and judgments related to these liabilities, and get the employees paid.
Defending Subcontractors Rights
Are you an employee who is not being paid fairly according to California law? Does your employer claim that your bathroom breaks are the only breaks you are entitled to, or are you required to take working lunches on a regular basis? Have you agreed to a daily contract, but you now find that the workday exceeds (and yes, there are exceptions) eight hours ? These are just some of the many ways in which unscrupulous employers take advantage of their employees. At Beck Law P.C., our Santa Rosa labor attorneys aggressively challenge employers who fail to provide adequate working conditions for employees. Team up with us, and you will find that the law is on your side. Contact us in our Santa Rosa office for a confidential consultation today. Beck Law P.C., is located at 2681 Cleveland Avenue just south of the Empire College School of Law, and north of Coddingtown Mall.