A Temecula nail salon is facing more than $1.2 million in fines after being cited for failing to pay 36 employees hourly rates or overtime. According to a news report in The Press Enterprise, employees at Young’s Nail Spa located off Margarita Road near Promenade Temecula worked shifts averaging more than nine hours each day. Officials with the Department of Industrial Relations found that the salon misclassified the employees and paid them per service instead of hours worked.
Investigators also said the salon did not allow workers to take the proper rest or meal breaks. The business has appealed the citations. State investigators looked through 40 months of records to find the violations. More than $670,000 in fines would go to the workers and about $570,000 of the fine is set aside for civil penalties. State officials also found the nail salon did not have valid workers’ compensation insurance for the past three years. Officials said using misclassification as a business model denies workers their rightful pay and gives the employer an unfair advantage over law-abiding businesses.
How to Spot Misclassification
According to the U.S. Department of Labor there are several factors that courts generally consider under the Fair Labor Standards Act when determining that an employee has been misclassified as a contractor instead of a full-time employee. These factors include:
- The extent to which the work performed is an integral part of the employer’s business
- The worker’s skill and initiative
- The permanency of the worker’s relationship with the employer
- The degree of control exercised by the employer over the employee
- The investments made in facilities and equipment by the employer and the employee
What Compensation Can You Receive?
If you are an employee who has been misclassified by your employer, you have likely lost a lot of money to which you were legally entitled. You may be able to receive a portion of the penalty imposed by the state. In addition, workers may be able to file a class action lawsuit by banding along with others who have suffered similar losses and receive the back wages that were owed to them. An experienced Orange County employment lawyer will be able fight for the rights of workers and help them hold unscrupulous employers accountable.
Source: https://www.pe.com/2018/07/31/state-fines-temecula-nail-salon-1-2-million-for-not-properly-paying-workers/
