Back pay for unpaid wages.

[Cheesesteak Cravings]

My concern is he said it was "all verbal". Did you not fill out a W4 sheet? If this was under the table you're SOL. And if you were 1099 and not withholding taxes you could get in trouble too.

[Nell Plotts]

I wouldn't worry about the IRS coming after the OP, the amount is too small. OTOH the will be looking to see how many others the employer has put on 1099s.

OP, file a complaint with the STATE of CA, find another job as you are working for free for this character.

[Panel Painter.]

Originally Posted by MrGompers

If he can not pay you, he deserves to go out of business.

Do not work another hour unless you are paid all of your back wages, including the overtime you mentioned.
Keep all of your time cards, and pay stubs for wages you have been paid.

The Dept of Labor is one of the only Govt agencies that moves quickly, so I would not hesitate to contact them. IF he goes out of business, you should be able to collect unemployment.

I am going to go in tommorow and collect my time cards and let the Boss or manager know that I quit and would like my final pay/OT pay within the next 72 hours.
It amazes me how this place is still running. There has only been ONE stable employee in the last 3 years. That worker was telling me all other workers/managers just come and go.

Originally Posted by Cheesesteak Cravings

My concern is he said it was "all verbal". Did you not fill out a W4 sheet? If this was under the table you're SOL. And if you were 1099 and not withholding taxes you could get in trouble too.

Yes, it was all verbal. I am still going to claim this income on my taxes next year to avoid any trouble.

Originally Posted by Nell Plotts

I wouldn't worry about the IRS coming after the OP, the amount is too small. OTOH the will be looking to see how many others the employer has put on 1099s.

OP, file a complaint with the STATE of CA, find another job as you are working for free for this character.

I am positive this guy has been evading taxes for who knows how many years. I am going to report him for that as well if it is not reported with the claim.

I may also talk to a lawyer. It is comical the way they ask me to do this and that and yet, do not pay me.

The boss/owner has $48K of product up forsale right now because of ME! If I hadn't showed up, none of those cars would be listed forsale. This angers me so much.

Whats even funnier is the boss was paying the previous workers well and they were putting out no product. I come in and do all this work only to be treated worst than the horrible workers before me.
A car sat in the shop for 6 months and I came and finished it in 1 week.

Now, if my boss does not pay me within 72hours from the time I quit, is that when backpay starts?
Or does backpay start when you are employed but not being paid?

Thanks for all the replies and help everyone.

[Panel Painter.]

I collected my time cards today, but the boss was not there.
I sent him a message saying I would not return till I was paid in full. He has not reponded to me.
I am assuming he thinks I will just walk away, and is completely ignoring me.

Because I informed him I will not return, does that mean I have not yet quit? Should I tell him "i quit" or is "informing you i will not be returning" the same?

[MrGompers]

Originally Posted by Panel Painter.

I collected my time cards today, but the boss was not there.
I sent him a message saying I would not return till I was paid in full. He has not reponded to me.
I am assuming he thinks I will just walk away, and is completely ignoring me.

Because I informed him I will not return, does that mean I have not yet quit? Should I tell him "i quit" or is "informing you i will not be returning" the same?

I don't know what state your in, but IMO you should not say or write "I quit". You should also not give the employer a time frame/deadline in which to pay your outstanding wages. Simply, say something like "I need to be paid all outstanding wages immediately, otherwise I can't afford to work here"

Again never say or write the words "I quit"

Your main goal at this point should be setting yourself up to collect unemployment. If you're in a state(s) like CA or the northeastern states it should be fairly easy to collect, but if you're in NC, AZ, FL, or other states that have more strict rules saying something like "I quit" can be used against you.

I would pose this situation in the unemployment forum and seek their advice. There are some very knowledgeable people over there.

http://www.city-data.com/forum/unemployment/

I would pose the question such as, "My employer owes me back wages, how should I leave the job so it will be easier for me to collect unemployment."?

[Panel Painter.]

Thanks for the reply MrGompers.
I never did say I quit. I only informed the boss/owner I would not show up until paid in full.
That was 2 days ago. I am assuming I am now owed back pay for 2 days.

Despite not being paid, I have been trying to resolve this situation without filing a claim. I'm not sure how long it will take, so I was trying to resolve it before.
Manager gives me the run around, boss/owner hasn't called me back or replied to any messages.

I am going to try it one last time tomorrow in the AM.

Rabrrita mentioned showing the boss the "DLSE Form 1" which usually results in immediate payment.
The owner is never there. If I show the manager, he will give me the run around once again and say he will show the boss and it will prolong it even more.

In my last effort, I am going to ask the boss/owner if he can confirm his business address. I'm sure he will respond, being curious why I would want to know. I will let him know I want to have correct information on my wage claim, maybe this will get him to pay up.

I am going to do this tommorow early in the AM, so if he still doesn't pay, i have enough time to file a wage claim before the day is over.
Unless someone here thinks I should file a claim without letting him know?

Of course after I bring this up, all bridges will be burned and I will never return to work there, thats okay.

To give you an idea of the type of a$$hole this guy is, I went yesterday to pick up some tools I left behind and a tow truck with 3 wrecked cars shows up. Nearly brand new cars, yet he can't cough up money to pay me.
Manager also speaks a bit too much, informed me the boss just sold a bunch of cars with good parts left on them for $35k.

[Rabrrita]

For the purposes of unemployment (even in a citizen state like CA) when you said you would not be returning (matters not why) you have quit and the burden of proof will be on you to show it's justifiable in order to collect. Unfortunately, one big requirement to a prompt approval is that prior to actually quitting, you needed to have files a complaint with DOL. That complaint and it's investigative outcome will be supplied to unemployment to substantiate your claim of a valid wage violation.

This is why we always say get the facts and process BEFORE you act.

Now, since you quit your job, the burden of it being justifiable will fall on you. The requirement to establish an approval of benefits based on a wage violation claim are:

1. That you can document your hours and paid wages to the satisfaction of unemployment. Note, although these wages should be reported to the state and unemployment taxes paid by the employer, in wage disputes, oftentimes unemployment wont have all the proper wages showing so they depend on the person filing to provide suitable documentation they can use.

2. That you made an attempt to resolve this with your employer and it was not corrected. Many wage and hour disputes are simple misunderstandings, errors, and even extortion attempts by an employee. Unemployment will require you to document the steps you took prior to quitting to resolve this issue. They do not expect you to get down on your knees and grovel, but they do expect some direct communication.

3. That you have filed the proper complain with the proper agency over the issue prior to quitting. This is often required because until this gets investigated, it's basically a he said, she said situation. Additionally, in order to use the law violation clause of justifiable quit, you have to show you believed a law violation occurred and the proof is the complaint. By filing afterwards, the employer can raise an issue over the validity of the wage violation since no complaint was filed.

This is why it's absolutely essential to know the steps Before You Act, so you avoid unnecessary delays, aggravation and expenses by doing it right.

(as an aside, i said DO NOT show them the form, it's none of their business - you file on the form and thats all it's for. If you need to show them something with the wages you are claiming, write out the information on a regular sheet of paper and use that)

[Panel Painter.]

UPDATE!:
7 months after I filed my case I was awarded my case. Still haven't received any money yet though.
Some of you said I was SOL since all was verbal between the employe, and I, well I wasn't.
I had tons of proof I worked there, pictures from work, text messages, time cards, even time cards I made when the employer didn't give me any, and bank statements.

Anyone viewing this, if you have some sort of proof, don't be discouraged and worried about filing a claim, file it and try to gather any proof you have for your case.

I recieved a letter in the mail 4 weeks ago I was awarded/won the case. I haven't received any money yet though, any day now I should be receiving a letter with instructions on how to obtain the money.

Anyone debating whether to file a claim or not or dealing with an employer giving you the run around about pay, don't waste anytime and file it now. Waiting an extra day isn't that bad, but waiting a whole week, the time adds up.

Here's how it went.
Day 1: File a claim.
Week 4: Get a letter for first meeting at the wage claim office.
Week 8: First meeting, Claim was not settled at this meeting, had to go to a hearing.
Week 12: Recieve letter for a hearing(second meeting)
Week 26!: Go to second hearing and explain to labor commissioner why you should win your case.
Week 28: Receive letter with verdict of your case. I was awarded my case.
Week 30: Recieve letter/instructions on how to retrieve your money or Recieve check from labor commissioner that was sent to them by the employer.
Week 30+: Try to obtain your money if employer still hasn't paid.

That was my time frame, see how long it is? Yours may vary by time of the year and state, but that's what it roughly looks like, considering the employer does not want to pay.

I'm still not sure how I will go to obtain the money, I haven recieved any letters with how to do it, but the commissioner said I would. I think the best option is to go after employers bank account, haven't found much info on this online though.

[stanley-88888888]

did you fill out an i-9 prior to start working ?