Litigating California Wage & Hour and Labor Code Class Actions

Table of Contents
I. Introduction and Overview ......................................................................................4
II. Common Exempt Misclassification Claims ...........................................................4
A. Overview of State Overtime Law............................................................................................... 5
B. The Executive (Managerial) Exemption .................................................................................... 6
C. The Administrative Exemption ................................................................................................ 10
D. The Outside Sales Exemption................................................................................................. 15
III. Unlawful Deductions from Wages ........................................................................18
A. Generally ................................................................................................................................. 18
B. Unlawful Bonus Plans ............................................................................................................. 19
C. Unlawful Commission Chargebacks ....................................................................................... 21
IV. Reimbursement of Employee Expenses ..............................................................25
A. The Duty to Reimburse Expenses Under Labor Code Section 2802 ..................................... 25
B. Reimbursement for Uniforms Under the Wage Orders........................................................... 28
V. Meal and Rest Period Claims ................................................................................29
A. Nature of Claims...................................................................................................................... 29
B. Debate Over Whether One-Hour Payment Is a “Penalty”....................................................... 32
C. Meaning of “Provide” a Meal Period........................................................................................ 33
D. Limits on IWC’s Power to Alter Labor Code Meal Period Rules ............................................. 38
VI.
Tip-pooling..............................................................................................................39
A. Actions Alleging Tips Were Diverted to Co-Workers Who Did Not Earn Them...................... 40
B. Actions Alleging “Agents” of Management Wrongfully Took Tips........................................... 42
C. The Future of Tip-pooling Cases Under California Law.......................................................... 43
VII. Vacation/Paid Time Off Forfeiture ........................................................................44
VIII. Waiting Time Penalties ..........................................................................................46
A. Generally ................................................................................................................................. 46
B. Application to Fixed-Term and Temporary Employment......................................................... 47
IX. Itemized Wage Statement Claims .........................................................................50
Seyfarth Shaw LLP | www.seyfarth.com Litigating California Wage & Hour Class Actions (12th Edition) 1