Short answer: wage theft is any failure to pay what California law says you earned: less than minimum wage, unpaid overtime, work off the clock, skipped meal and rest breaks, stolen tips, unlawful deductions, unreimbursed expenses, late final pay, or misclassifying you as an independent contractor. California workers can recover the unpaid wages plus interest, statutory penalties and attorney fees, through the Labor Commissioner or in court, and intentional wage theft above $950 is a crime. Claims generally reach back three years, and up to four. Abdi & Associates, Inc. helps individuals with wage theft claims throughout California. The consultation is free.
What counts as wage theft in California
- Minimum wage violations. Paying less than the state minimum of $16.90 per hour (2026) or a higher local minimum such as the City of Los Angeles, Los Angeles County or West Hollywood rate, or a higher statutory rate for fast food or healthcare workers (Labor Code sections 1182.12 and 1197).
- Unpaid overtime. California requires time and a half after eight hours in a day or 40 in a week and double time after 12 hours in a day or eight hours on the seventh consecutive day (section 510). Paying “straight time” for overtime, averaging hours across weeks, or calling an hourly worker “salaried” to avoid overtime are all violations.
- Off-the-clock work. Requiring work before clocking in, after clocking out, during meal periods or from home without pay, and rounding time in the employer’s favor.
- Meal and rest break violations. Denying a 30-minute meal period before the end of the fifth hour or a paid 10-minute rest break every four hours, or interrupting them, owes one hour of premium pay per day for each type of violation (sections 226.7 and 512).
- Tip theft. Tips belong to the employee. An employer may not take tips, use them to offset wages, or take a share of a tip pool for owners or managers (section 351). California has no tip credit; tipped workers are owed the full minimum wage.
- Unlawful deductions. Deducting for cash shortages, breakage, uniforms, tools or “training” is unlawful in most circumstances (sections 221 and 2802).
- Unreimbursed expenses. Employers must reimburse necessary business expenses, including personal cell phone use and mileage (section 2802).
- Misclassification. Treating an employee as an independent contractor to avoid minimum wage, overtime, breaks and payroll taxes. Under the ABC test (section 2775), the worker is an employee unless the company proves otherwise.
- Late or missing final pay. Final wages are due immediately on termination and within 72 hours of a resignation; an employer that pays late owes a penalty of a day’s wages for each day late, up to 30 days (sections 201 through 203).
- Inaccurate pay stubs. Wage statements must show hours, rates, gross and net pay and other required items; violations carry penalties of up to $4,000 per employee (section 226).
What you can recover
The unpaid wages themselves, interest, premium pay for missed breaks, liquidated damages equal to the unpaid minimum wage (section 1194.2), waiting time penalties, wage statement penalties, civil penalties under the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) in some cases, and attorney fees and costs. Where wages were withheld from many workers, class or representative actions can address the whole workforce.
How to bring a wage theft claim
- Labor Commissioner. File a wage claim with the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. The Labor Commissioner holds a settlement conference and, if the claim does not settle, a hearing (a “Berman hearing”) and issues an order that can be appealed to the superior court. No filing fee, and an attorney is not required.
- Court. A lawsuit in superior court can recover the same wages plus penalties and attorney fees, and is the path for larger claims, class actions and PAGA claims.
- Combined with other claims. Wage theft often comes with retaliation when the worker complains. Firing, cutting hours or threatening a worker for complaining about wages is illegal (section 98.6), and threatening to report immigration status is separately unlawful (sections 244 and 1019).
Deadlines
- Three years for unpaid minimum wage, overtime, break premiums and most statutory wage claims (Code of Civil Procedure section 338), extended to four years when the claim is brought as an unfair competition claim (Business and Professions Code section 17208).
- One year for wage statement penalties and for civil penalties under PAGA (Code of Civil Procedure section 340); waiting time penalties for late final pay carry the same three-year period as the wages themselves (Labor Code section 203(b)).
- One year to file a retaliation complaint with the Labor Commissioner (section 98.7); two years for a civil wrongful termination claim.
Wage theft is also a crime in California
Since 2022, intentional theft of wages of more than $950 from one employee, or more than $2,350 from two or more employees, within a 12-month period can be prosecuted as grand theft (Penal Code section 487m). Criminal exposure does not replace the civil claim; it adds pressure on employers to resolve legitimate claims.
How to protect your claim
- Keep your own record of hours worked, breaks taken and missed, and tips received; photograph schedules and time records.
- Save pay stubs, offer letters, handbooks and any texts or emails about pay.
- Put wage complaints in writing so that retaliation can be proven.
- Do not sign a release or “settlement” of wage claims without advice. Wage claims generally cannot be waived for less than what is owed.
How Abdi & Associates can help
Abdi & Associates, Inc. helps individuals with wage theft and unpaid wage claims throughout California. We calculate what is owed, identify the penalties that apply, choose between the Labor Commissioner and court, and, where a case calls for it, work with experienced employment counsel we trust while staying involved in your case. We work remotely, by phone, video and secure electronic signature. Consultations are free. Call (888) 772-2529 or, in Spanish, (323) 310-4264.
Frequently asked questions
My employer pays me in cash. Can I still make a claim?
Yes. Cash payment does not remove the employer’s obligations, and your own records of hours and pay are admissible evidence. Employers who fail to keep records lose the benefit of the doubt.
Does my immigration status matter?
No. Wage claims are available to every worker regardless of status (Labor Code section 1171.5), and the Labor Commissioner does not ask.
Can my employer fire me for filing a wage claim?
Not legally. Retaliation for a wage complaint violates Labor Code section 98.6 and supports its own claim for reinstatement, lost wages and penalties.
How much does a wage theft lawyer cost?
Wage claims are generally handled on a contingency basis, and California law requires the employer to pay the employee’s attorney fees in most successful wage cases.
To recover specific unpaid amounts, see our unpaid wages page. For other workplace claims, see our employment law overview.
Sources: Cal. Lab. Code §§ 98.6, 98.7, 201-203, 221, 226, 226.7, 244, 351, 510, 512, 1019, 1171.5, 1182.12, 1194, 1194.2, 1197, 2775, 2802; Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 338, 340; Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17208; Cal. Penal Code § 487m.
Reviewed by Shawn Abdi, Esq., Abdi & Associates, Inc. Last reviewed: September 4, 2026. Attorney advertising. This page is general information, not legal advice about your specific situation. Legal deadlines have exceptions; confirm the deadlines that apply to your case with a lawyer.