Wage Theft Lawsuit Filed Against California Car Wash Business

A recent wage theft lawsuit has been filed against a California car wash business, which has been accused of violating state labor laws and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

According to the Los Angeles attorney filing the wage theft lawsuit, the employees were allegedly deprived of full minimum wage, overtime pay, and all hours worked.

The wage theft lawsuit also accused the car wash business of not providing breaks or rest periods required under California labor laws, nor were employees compensated for them.

Silver Lake Car Wash Inc. is named as the primary defendant in this wage theft lawsuit, which was filed in collaboration between the Los Angeles attorney and the California Department of Industrial Relations, as well as the Community Labor Environmental Action Network. The Community Labor Environmental Action Network (CLEAN) is a nonprofit organization that is focused on community and the rights of low wage income employees in the Los Angeles area.

These groups banned together to file this wage theft lawsuit, after discovering the labor conditions these car wash employees endured on a daily basis.

According to the wage theft lawsuit, Silver Lake Car Wash currently has 20 workers who are allegedly paid as little as $6.50 per hour. This is not only below the California state wage of $10.50 per hour, but also the federal minimum wage rate of $7.25 per hour.

Overview of California Labor Laws

Even in states that do not have the strongest labor laws, the Department of Labor (DOL) expects employers to pay an hourly rate of at least $7.25 per hour to nonexempt employees.

Under federal labor laws, nonexempt employees are entitled to 1.5 times their hourly work rate if they work over 40 hours in a single workweek or eight hours in a single work day. Under California labor laws, nonexempt employees are also entitled to 30 minute meal breaks every five hours and 10 minute rest periods every four hours.

If an employee is forced to work overtime or work through their meal breaks and rest periods, the employer must compensate them an extra hour of work on their paychecks. Silver Lake Car Wash allegedly failed to do this, along with not complying with other state labor law requirements.

In addition to not paying employees full wages or overtime, employees were allegedly not paid anything if they worked for less than five hours in a single workday. In these instances, the car wash would close early due to lack of customers and not pay the employees anything.

Furthermore, the wage theft lawsuit claims the car wash operator had falsified payroll records to avoid paying overtime to their employees or compensate them for any missed meal breaks. Silver Lake Car Wash also failed to provide safety equipment, which forced employees to buy their own gloves and boots.

The wage theft lawsuit is seeking damages for all missing wages and overtime for current and former employees who have allegedly been underpaid for the last four years. Silver Lake Car Wash could face penalties up to $2,500 per labor law violation and will be expected to foot the bill for the investigation costs.

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