Minimum wage violations have more than doubled in California cities like Los Angeles, costing workers billions.
California workers lose up to $4,000 per year in major metro areas that include San Francisco, San Diego and San Jose, according to a study by Rutgers University.
“This is the time to be strengthening — not weakening — labor enforcement,” said Professor Janice Fine, director of the Workplace Justice Lab at Rutgers University.
The study was conducted by the School of Management and Labor Relations (SMLR), a research center dedicated to analyzing labor standards enforcement in the U.S.
“California is leading the way nationally in terms of strong state and local minimum wage laws, but our study shows that too many low-wage workers are not receiving the pay they are entitled to,” Fine said.
This November, a vote could come in the form of a California ballot initiative to repeal the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) act, revoking the ability to file class-action lawsuits over certain violations.
Enacted in 2004, the California law empowers employees to file lawsuits for labor code violations on behalf of themselves, other workers, and the state.
The center took federal data collected from 2014 to 2023 and found that last year saw a 56% increase in violations, affecting nearly 1.5 million workers.
The study also found that mostly Black and Latino workers, and young people from the ages of 16-24 were more likely to experience minimum wage theft.
The most noticeable violation involved groups such as childcare workers, nannies, and home health care professionals.
On April 1, Californians experienced the fast-food minimum wage hike from $16 to $20 as the state continues to have one of the highest minimum wages in the country.
Business and labor groups would need to arrive at a deal before the end-of-June deadline to remove the measure. If no deal is reached, the issue will be presented to California voters in November.