San Jose, CA asked in Employment Discrimination and Employment Law for California

Q: I filled out a W-4 I was not paid in a payroll check and I never received W-2 is it legal to pay cash?

Instead of paying employees directly my employer would put all of our paycheck in to his grandson's account he was in charge of paying us and we never got paid on time we'd be to 3 maybe even a month late our bills racked up causing a major financial hardship 2 myself and the rest of the employees that were working at the time his grandson with keep 200 year few hundred there sometimes hey there was no money to pay us and we can go months without receiving a dime from work okay for his grandson to deduct money or even handle the money legally?

2 Lawyer Answers
Joseph Franklin Klatt
Joseph Franklin Klatt
Answered
  • La Jolla, CA
  • Licensed in California

A: I am not sure what type of employee you are, i.e independent contractor, employee, exempt, non-exempt, but regardless, there are all sorts of things wrong with this. "Is it legal" is a broad question that isn't very helpful. What would be is contacting a local employment lawyer. There is a very good chance that you and the other employees are entitled to any money you haven't been paid plus additional damages, that may be substantial.

Finally, just because you haven't been properly and haven't been given a W-2 doesn't mean you don't have to properly file your own taxes. You should consult your tax professional about how to handle your own income reporting so you don't get caught up in your employers mess.

Louis George Fazzi
Louis George Fazzi
Answered
  • Employment Law Lawyer
  • Jess Ranch, CA
  • Licensed in California

A: You can contact the California Labor Commissioner's office at their website https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/dlse.html

Copy and paste this link into your browser and you will be taken to the Labor Commissioner's website. As soon as you go to this page, look on the right side upper part of the page and click the link for Wage Claim Adjudication under the heading Quick Links and you will be taken to the page where you can learn all you need to know about making sure you get paid timely and for the work you perform for your employer. Paying in cash the way you describe is not legal in my opinion, because it deprives you of the required notices you should receive with every paycheck. I do not think, from what you describe, that your employer is following and complying with California law which applies to all employers in the State of California. Copy and paste this link: https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/HowToFileWageClaim.htm

You should file a claim with the Labor Commissioner's office so you can help not only yourself but also all other employees at your employer because it seems to me you are being cheated by your employer. The Labor Commissioner's office will actually force the employer to pay all your back pay plus interest on all pay you were not paid when you should have been. I'll bet the Labor Commissioner's office will discover a host of issues at your place of employment, and compel your employer to comply with all their obligations to you and the other employees there.

1 user found this answer helpful

Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.

The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.

Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.