Los Angeles County Minimum Wage Overview
As of July 1, 2020, the new minimum wage in Los Angeles County is now $14.25 per hour for businesses with 25 or fewer employees and $15.00 per hour for businesses with 26 or more employees. Steady increases have been taking place every year since July 1, 2016. By July 1, 2021, all businesses in Los Angeles County will be required to pay their employees $15.00 per hour regardless of how many employees they have. The state of California’s current minimum wage is $13.00 per hour, and the federal minimum wage is currently $7.25 per hour. Some states have their own minimum wage, but others, like Alabama, Louisiana, and South Carolina, do not.
This new minimum wage applies to all employers in unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County. If an area is unincorporated, that means that they are not run by a local government. Not all of the cities in Los Angles County have raised their minimum wage. Some are considering it. Some have already done it, including the city of Los Angeles. There are some exceptions. If an employer works in the public sector, then they are not required to pay the new wage. Also, if any companies are exempt from the state of California’s minimum wage, then they are also exempt from the LA minimum wage law. Non-profit organizations are still required to pay this new wage. Part-time employees who work at least two hours per week, employees on probation, and employees who are in training in the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County are eligible for this raise.
Employers are required to let employees know about these changes in pay rates. According to California state law, employers are required to let employees know about their pay rate, how they will be paid, and their pay period (e.g., weekly, monthly) before their first day of work. Employers are required to notify employees if any changes are made to the business, like name, location, or owner or the employees’ pay rates within seven calendar days of these changes.
If Los Angeles County residents believe that they are not being paid the correct wage, they can file a complaint with the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor. If you are not sure about filing a complaint and just want some information, you can call or visit your local Wage and Hour Office. The WHD also has a toll-free helpline: 1-866-4USWAGE (1-866-487-9243) TTY: 1-877-889-5627. They are available Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time.
Filing a complaint or having the WHD investigate will be at no cost to you. These types of cases have a two-year statute of limitations (three if the violation was deliberate), which means that if there were wages that were not properly collected more than two years before the lawsuit, you might not be eligible to collect them.
If you file a complaint, your name and the type of complaint will not be revealed unless it is necessary to pursue an allegation. Another reason your name and the type of complaint might be revealed is if the WHD is required to do so by the court. Your name and the type of complaint will not be revealed unless you give permission.
If your place of work contains undocumented employees, they will not be reported to Immigration if you decide to file a complaint. Employees deserve proper pay. The fact that an employer hires undocumented citizens should not get in the way of that. If you know people that want to file a complaint but they do not speak English, some WHD employees speak many
languages. They also have interpreters who can help with over 170 languages.
