California Labor Code. California
One hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000) if the unsatisfied portion of the judgment is more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000).
(b) In lieu of filing and maintaining the bond required by this section, the employer may provide the Labor Commissioner with a notarized copy of an accord reached with an individual holding an unsatisfied final judgment. If the accord provides for the judgment to be paid in installments, and an installment payment is not made, the employer is no longer excused from satisfying the bond requirement of this section.
(c) (1) The bond required by this section shall be in favor of, and payable to, the people of the State of California, and shall be for the benefit of any employee damaged by his or her employer’s failure to pay wages, including any interest, penalties, and attorney’s fees.
(2) This section shall not require a bond in favor of employees covered by a bona fide collective bargaining agreement, if the agreement expressly provides for wages, hours of work, working conditions, a process to resolve disputes concerning nonpayment of wages, and a waiver of the bond required by this section.
(3) Thirty days prior to the cancellation or termination of any bond required by this section, the surety shall send written notice to both the employer and the Labor Commissioner, identifying the bond and the date of the cancellation or termination. If the bond is terminated or canceled, the employer shall obtain a new surety bond and file a copy of that bond with the Labor Commissioner to remain in compliance with this section.
(d) For purposes of this section, a judgment also includes any final arbitration award where the time to file a petition for a trial de novo or a petition to vacate or correct the arbitration award has expired and no petition is pending.
(e) Subject to subdivision (f), an employer similar in operation and ownership to an employer with an unsatisfied final judgment for unpaid wages, upon receiving written notice of the unsatisfied judgment, shall be deemed the same employer for purposes of this section if (1) the employees of the successor employer are engaged in substantially the same work in substantially the same working conditions under substantially the same supervisors or (2) if the new entity has substantially the same production process or operations, produces substantially the same products or offers substantially the same services, and has substantially the same body of customers.
(f) Any employer, or other person acting on behalf of an employer, that conducts business in violation of this section shall be subject to a civil penalty of two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500). Any employer that has previously been assessed and failed to pay a penalty pursuant to this section shall be subject to an additional penalty of one hundred dollars ($100) for each calendar day that the employer conducts business in violation of this section; however, this additional amount shall not exceed one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000). These civil penalties may be assessed under a citation issued by the Labor Commissioner and the procedures for issuing, contesting, and enforcing judgments shall be the same as those set forth in Section 1197.1. The Labor Commissioner shall not assess these civil penalties against an entity determined to be a successor employer pursuant to subdivision (e) within the first 30 days after notice of the judgment.
(Added by Stats. 2015, Ch. 803, Sec. 4. Effective January 1, 2016.)
238.1. (a) Where an employer is conducting business in violation of Section 238, the Labor Commissioner may issue and serve on that employer a stop order prohibiting the use of employee labor by that employer until the employer’s compliance with Section 238, provided that the stop order would not compromise or imperil public safety or the life, health, and care of vulnerable individuals. The stop order shall also prohibit the employer from continuing to provide services by conducting business using the labor of another business, contractor, or subcontractor. The stop order shall become effective immediately upon the service of the order. Any employee affected by the work stoppage shall be paid by the employer for such time lost, not exceeding 10 days, pending compliance by the employer. The employer may protest the stop order by making and filing with the Labor Commissioner a written request for a hearing within 20 days after service of the stop order. The hearing shall be held within five days from the date of filing the request. The Labor Commissioner shall notify the employer of the time and place of the hearing by mail. At the conclusion of the hearing, the stop order shall be immediately affirmed or dismissed, and within 24 hours thereafter, the Labor Commissioner shall issue and serve on all parties to the hearing by registered or certified mail a written notice of findings, accompanied by written findings. A writ of mandate may be taken from the findings to the appropriate superior court. The writ shall be taken within 45 days after the mailing of the notice of findings accompanied by written findings. The Labor Commissioner may file an action in superior court for injunctive and other appropriate relief to enforce the stop order and shall be entitled to recovery of costs and attorney’s fees if any relief is obtained by the Labor Commissioner.
(b) Failure of an employer, owner, director, officer, or managing agent of the employer to observe a stop order issued and served upon him or her pursuant to this section is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in county jail not exceeding 60 days or by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or both. For the purposes of this section, the term “managing agent” has the same meaning as in subdivision (b) of Section 3294 of the Civil Code.
(Added by Stats. 2015, Ch. 803, Sec. 5. Effective January 1, 2016.)
238.2. (a) The Labor Commissioner may create a lien on any real property in California of an employer, or a successor employer pursuant to subdivision (e) of Section 238, that is conducting business in violation of Section 238 for the full amount of any wages, interest, and penalties claimed to be owed to any employee. To the extent attorney’s fees are specifically allowed to be recovered by this code, such as by, but not limited to, subdivision (f) of Section 2673.1 and Section 2802, during a hearing pursuant to Section 98, the Labor Commissioner may include that amount in the lien.
(b) The Labor Commissioner may create the lien provided in this section by recording a certificate of lien using the same procedure applicable under subdivision (g) of Section 98.2.
(c) The Labor Commissioner shall issue a certificate of release, releasing the lien created under this section, upon final satisfaction of any judgment entered in favor of the employee, upon adjudication of the claim in favor of the employer, upon the filing of a surety bond pursuant to Section 238. The certificate of release may be recorded by the employer at the employer’s expense.
(d) Unless the lien is satisfied or released, a lien under this section shall continue until 10 years from the date of its creation.
(e) Prior to using the lien procedure in this section, the Labor Commissioner shall provide at least 20 days’ notice to the employer. The notice shall advise the employer of the Labor Commissioner’s authority to create a lien on the property to secure payment of the claim.
(f) The Labor Commissioner may serve the notice with and in the same manner as the order, decision, and award in accordance with Section 98.1.
(g) A lien created pursuant to this section is in addition to any other lien rights available to an employee or to the Labor Commissioner and shall not be construed to limit those rights.
(Added by Stats. 2015, Ch. 803, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 2016.)
238.3. (a) The Labor Commissioner may create a lien on any personal property in California of an employer that conducts business in violation of Section 238 for the full amount of any wages, interest, and penalties claimed to be owed to any employee. To the extent attorney’s fees are specifically allowed to be recovered by this code, such as by, but not limited to, subdivision (f) of Section 2673.1 and Section 2802, during a hearing pursuant to Section 98, the Labor Commissioner may include that amount in the lien.
(b) The Labor Commissioner may create the lien provided in this section by filing a notice of lien with the Secretary of State on the standard form of initial financing statement pursuant to Section 9521 of the Commercial Code. The standard form shall be completed in the following manner:
(1) The Labor Commissioner shall be identified as the secured party.
(2) The employer shall be identified as