Santa Ana Employment Law Attorneys

No. Labor Code section 1019 prohibits employers from engaging in any unfair immigration-related practice, including threats to contact immigration authorities, in retaliation for an employee asserting workplace rights. The statute provides a private right of action with civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation, plus suspension or revocation of the employer's business license. Labor Code section 244 also prohibits using employees' immigration status against them in retaliation. Government Code section 12940(h) similarly bars retaliation under FEHA. Most importantly, Labor Code section 1171.5 confirms that all state labor protections, including the right to recover unpaid wages, apply regardless of immigration status.

Labor Code section 226 requires employers to provide accurate, itemized wage statements showing nine specific categories of information including hours worked, hourly rates, gross and net wages, all deductions, and the employer's legal name and address. Failure to provide compliant wage statements supports statutory damages of $50 for the first pay period and $100 per pay period for subsequent violations, capped at $4,000 per employee, plus attorneys' fees. If the employer pays in cash with no records at all, the failure also supports a PAGA claim under Labor Code section 2698 for civil penalties on behalf of all affected workers. The Labor Commissioner's Santa Ana office accepts in-person and online wage claims.

Labor Code section 2775 codifies the ABC test, presuming all workers are employees unless the hiring entity proves all three: (A) freedom from control, (B) work outside the company's usual business, and (C) customary engagement in an independently established trade. Most janitorial and cleaning workers fail prong B because cleaning is the company's core business. If misclassified, you can recover minimum wage and overtime under Labor Code sections 1194 and 1197, missed-break premiums under section 226.7, business-expense reimbursement under section 2802, and waiting-time penalties under section 203. The Property Service Workers Protection Act (Labor Code section 1420 et seq.) adds janitorial-industry-specific protections including a registry requirement and harassment-prevention training.

Public employees with a property interest in continued employment are entitled to Skelly v. State Personnel Board pre-deprivation due process before a termination or significant disciplinary action. That includes written notice of the proposed action, the supporting materials, and an opportunity to respond. For peace officers, the Public Safety Officers Procedural Bill of Rights Act (Government Code section 3300 et seq.) adds interrogation procedures and statute-of-limitations protections. Substantive protections under FEHA against discrimination, retaliation, and failure to accommodate apply on top of the procedural ones. Violations can support reinstatement, back pay, emotional distress damages, and attorneys' fees in either administrative proceedings or Orange County Superior Court.

Labor Code section 246, as amended by SB 616 effective January 1, 2024, requires employers to provide at least 40 hours or five days of paid sick leave per year. Employees accrue one hour for every 30 hours worked or can be front-loaded the full amount at the start of each year. Sick leave can be used for diagnosis, care, or treatment of an employee's or family member's health condition, or for purposes related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. Retaliation for using sick leave is prohibited by Labor Code section 246.5(c), with a rebuttable presumption of retaliation if an adverse action follows within 30 days. Damages include the value of unpaid sick leave, civil penalties, and reinstatement.

Government Code section 12945 prohibits pregnancy discrimination and requires reasonable accommodations including transfer to less strenuous or hazardous positions, modified work schedules, and access to seating. Pregnancy Disability Leave under section 12945(a)(1) provides up to four months of job-protected unpaid leave for pregnancy-related disability, separate from CFRA bonding leave under Government Code section 12945.2. The employer must engage in a good-faith interactive process to identify accommodations. Refusal to accommodate or termination because of pregnancy is FEHA discrimination, with a three-year filing window at the California Civil Rights Department. Damages can include reinstatement, lost wages, emotional distress, punitive damages, and attorneys' fees.

The Private Attorneys General Act (Labor Code section 2698 et seq.) deputizes an aggrieved employee to recover civil penalties for Labor Code violations on behalf of the state. The 2024 reforms tightened standing to require that the employee personally suffered each violation alleged and added new employer-cure procedures, but PAGA remains a powerful tool for workers in small Santa Ana businesses where individual claims may be modest but systemic violations are widespread. Penalties typically are $100 per employee per pay period initially and $200 thereafter. 65% of penalties go to the state, and 35% to affected workers. The employee must give written notice to the Labor and Workforce Development Agency before filing suit.