Legal Question in Employment Law in California

Are my employers allowed to do this?

There are several issues that have upset a few employees here in the work place that might be against the law.

1. We are required to travel for work after hours, we get paid hourly but are not reimbursed for gas or mileage. Can they do that?

2. The owners bring their dog in every day even though some employees are allergic. Can they do that?

3. We went from 8 holidays to 5 holidays. Don't full time employee's get a total 10 holidays?

4. They want us to sign a document for our current wages, confidential ''non-interference'' segment stating employee agrees to liquidate damages of fifty thousand for breach of paragraph...the paragraph is so general. They also want us to back date to original date of employment. This agreement also states they will reimburse for travel yet in reality they do not reimburse for mileage and the employees travel a good amount.

Without losing employment or giving out my personal information how can I inform the labor department?

Please help!


Asked on 7/27/06, 5:25 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Thomas Pavone Pavone & Cohen

Re: Are my employers allowed to do this?

1. You are entitled to reimbursement for milage at the IRS rate in effect (currenty 44.5 cents per mile). Keep good records and a claim can be made with the labor commissioner. If the practice has been longstanding or it affects several people, you may want to consult with an attorney to explore all options. If you would like to discuss this further feel free to contact me.

2. If a health hazard exists, make a complaint to Cal-OSHA, a State of California agency. You can find a local office in the white pages of your telephone directory.

3. Employers have the discretion to not provide paid holidays - there is no legal requirement to continue a certain number of holidays.

4. It is difficult to respond to this question without all of the language of the agreement - you may want to consult with an attorney to review it if you have concerns before signing

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Answered on 8/03/06, 12:42 pm


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