Legal Question in Employment Law in California

Re: Pay cut

Unless the employer had in an illegal reason for lowering your pay such as racial discrimination, the general rule would be that the employer could lower your pay. You are presumed to be at "at will" employee in California, so employers can generally modify or terminate the terms of your employment.

In some circumstances, employees might have enhanced protection that would prevent this from happening. If you were in a union, the collective bargaining agreement might protect you. If you were a civil servant, there may be rules that need to be followed before termination or pay scale reduction. However, you did not indicate any facts to suggest that you were anything other than an "at will" employee of a private employer.