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WEEKLY H-2A NEWS AND UPDATES
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- Written by Jennifer M. Schermerhorn, Rebecca Hause-Schultz, Jizell Lopez, and Hannah Fortin
H-2A Labor Recruiters Charged with Fraud and Conspiracy
Yesterday, three men from Southern California were arrested pursuant to a federal grand jury indictment for allegedly participating in an immigration fraud scheme, including illegally charging individuals from Mexico thousands of dollars in exchange for H-2A visas.
Common Sense Wins the Day: Accurate Wage Statements Reflect Wages Paid
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- Written by Hannah Fortin
In California, we often see what are referred to as “derivative” additional claims when employees bring suits against employers for wage-related violations. Frequently, these “derivative” claims include an assertion that the employer issued incorrect wage statements. For example, if employees were suing their employer for not paying minimum wage, they would also claim that the employer issued incorrect wage statements, as the wage statements would, of course, not include the pay the employees claimed they should have earned. This may trigger as much as $4,000 per employee in penalties.
Fortunately, in a recent employer-friendly opinion, a California Court of Appeal reversed an award for wage statement penalties, noting that the wage statement claims fail as a matter of law when based on the alleged failure to show all wages “earned” when the wage statements accurately show all wages paid to the employee.