As an employee, you are entitled to all of your earned compensation. This includes not only your hourly or salary wages but also overtime, commission, bonuses, off-the-clock work, and vacation time that is unused upon termination of employment.
Employers must pay you at least twice during a calendar month, on days designated as regular paydays. If you think that your employer erred in the calculation of your wages or that you are being denied all of your wages, you have a right to see your payroll records after making a reasonable request to your employer. If your employer fails to provide you access to your records, he or she can be fined and subject to a civil action. If you need help collecting unpaid wages from your employer, contact a wage attorney at Kingsley Szamet Employment Lawyers for assistance.
Payment of wages after termination
An employee who is discharged must be paid all of his or her wages immediately at the time of termination. This includes accrued vacation days not taken during employment. Many people are not aware that direct deposits of wages terminate immediately when an employee quits or is fired. Thus, another manner of receiving your last check must be determined based on whether you quit or were fired and on how much notice was given. An employer who willfully fails to pay any of the wages owed to a terminated employee within a designated time frame can be assessed penalties.
Overtime and off-the-clock wages
You must get paid for overtime no later than the pay period following the one in which the overtime was earned. If an employer does not pay you your full wages including overtime, you may be able to recover more than what you are owed for wages.
Off-the-clock work is work that your employer may require you to do before or after the start of your shift, including running errands or picking up supplies. You are entitled to compensation for all work performed, regardless of whether it was during your predetermined shift or not.
Recovering unpaid wages
If you were denied overtime pay or were required to work off the clock without pay, you may be entitled to recover not only pay that is owed to you but also the penalties and the costs of pursuing your claim - including attorney's fees and court costs.
Even if your claim is small, chances are other employees at your workplace are being treated the same way. The experienced attorneys at Kingsley Szamet Employment Lawyers may be able to combine these cases into a class action lawsuit that will recover unpaid wages for you and your co-workers, while forcing the employer to change its ways.
Contact us about your unpaid wages claim
If you believe that you were treated unfairly in terms of wages paid or hours worked, contact a wage lawyer at Kingsley Szamet for a free initial consultation to determine whether you have a claim.
Some of the many areas we serve for unpaid wage lawsuits include:
Encino | Long Beach | Pasadena | Santa Monica | Glendale | Torrance | Los Angeles