BEDFORD Care Group, Inc., a company that operates six assisted living facilities in Fresno County, was recently cited by the labor agency, for violating California’s employment laws including unpaid minimum wage, unpaid overtime, meal and rest break violations, and failure to issue itemized wage statements.
The employer was ordered to back-pay eleven residential caregivers a total of $1,398,890 in unpaid overtime, $17,025 in unpaid minimum wage, and $95,053 in meal and rest period premiums. The employer was also fined $114,500 in penalties. The citations total $1,625,468.
“Residential caregivers perform some of the most important work in our communities, providing reliable, compassionate care to those who need it, but they can work very long hours without proper overtime pay,” said Labor Commissioner Julie Su. “These live-in employees were on call and often required to work 24 hours a day and were not paid for all hours worked. This is wage theft, and we will do everything in our power to ensure workers are paid all the wages they have earned. ”
The citations were issued after an investigation by the Labor Commissioner’s office where the employees were interviewed. The labor agency acknowledged that it received invaluable assistance from two community-based organizations, the Asian Law Caucus and the Filipino Advocates for Justice, which assisted the workers in coming forward.
In the residential care industry, some employers erroneously assume that if they made an agreement to pay their employee a fixed salary (say, $1,500 per month) that they can require the employee to work unlimited number of hours. It is quite common for live-in caregivers to have the following work schedule: wake up and start work at 5:30 a.m. to prepare and serve breakfast, assist in hygiene and dressing up of clients, do laundry, serve medication, serve lunch, accompany clients to doctor appointments, do paperwork, serve snacks and dinner, prepare and clean beddings, perform housekeeping chores and then tuck the clients to bed by 8:00 p.m. The caregiver then cleans up and goes to bed around 10:00 p.m. He or she may have to wake up at night to provide care to some clients.
In this scenario, it may be argued that the caregiver is working virtually 18 to 20 hours per day. When employees are required to work in a way that does not allow 5 hours of uninterrupted sleep, the law considers them to have worked 24 hours per day and must be compensated accordingly.
All non-exempt employees, not only caregivers, are entitled to be paid for all of their work hours. They must be paid overtime rates of time and a half for work in excess of 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week. This is true even if the employee is an undocumented immigrant.
Affected employees are advised to have a confidential consultation with an experienced employment attorney. Fear of retaliation or disclosure of undocumented status may compel them to keep silent, endure the abuse and not seek legal help. However, an attorney knowledgeable in employment law will know how to address these concerns. Often, the first step to obtaining just wages for one’s hard work is to pick up the phone, ask for help, and be informed of one’s rights.
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C. Joe Sayas, Jr., Esq. is an experienced trial attorney who has successfully obtained significant results, including several million dollar recoveries for consumers against insurance companies and big business. He is a member of the Million Dollar-Advocates Forum—a prestigious group of trial lawyers whose membership is limited to those who have demonstrated exceptional skill, experience and excellence in advocacy. He has been featured in the cover of Los Angeles Daily Journal’s Verdicts and Settlements for his professional accomplishments and recipient of numerous awards from community and media organizations. His litigation practice concentrates in the following areas: serious personal injuries, wrongful death, insurance claims, unfair business practices, wage and hour (overtime) litigation. You can visit his website at www.joesayas law.com or contact his office by telephone at (818) 291-0088.