CA Labor Commissioner Website Issues Updated Wage Theft Notice Template for New Employees

Since 2012, the California Wage Theft Protection Act (Labor Code section 2810.5) has mandated all employers to furnish each newly hired employee with a written notice containing required information.  The notice must be in the language the employer normally uses to communicate employment-related information to the employee.

As a reminder, the notice must contain the following items:

• the rate or rates of pay and basis thereof, whether paid by the hour, shift, day, week, salary, piece, commission, or otherwise, including any rates for overtime, as applicable;
• allowances, if any, claimed as part of the minimum wage, including meal or lodging allowances;
• regular payday designated by the employer as required by law;
• the name of the employer, including any “doing business as” names used by the employer;
• the physical address of the employer’s main office or principal place of business, and a mailing address, if different;
• the telephone number of the employer;
• the name, address, and telephone number of the employer’s workers’ compensation insurance carrier; and
• any other information the Labor Commissioner deems material and necessary.

It also requires that the employer notify the employee in writing of any changes to the information set forth in the Notice To Employee within seven (7) calendar days after the time of the changes, unless one of the following applies: (a) All changes are reflected on a timely wage statement furnished in accordance with Labor Code section 226, or (b) Notice of all changes is provided in another writing require by law within seven days of the changes. 

With this year’s recent passage of Senate Bill 616, increasing the amount of paid sick leave to employees, and Assembly Bill 636, requiring employers to notify employees regarding any federal or state disaster declarations within the county of employment issued within 30 days of the beginning of employment, the Labor Commissioner has updated the required written notice template to account for these new enactments. Thus, an employer previously providing less than 5 days or 40 hours of paid sick leave per year will need to provide employees a new copy of the notice. 

As of now, the updated notice is only available in English, but other languages will likely be added in the near future.  In addition, the Labor Commissioner has published on its website a series of FAQs regarding the details of the notice which employers may find helpful to review.

Rosasco Law Group, APC is your source for labor and employment compliance issues.  Please call us today to make sure you are on the right track.