Q: Can an employer (a daycare) require an employee to make up hours because they receive a payment from a PPP loan.
Our daycare was closed during the pandemic because we were considered non essential. Our employer received a PPP loan during this time frame so they can pay us. Since we were closed during that timeframe we only worked partime cleaning etc. Now that the business is up and running our employer is telling us we are required to make up all those hours because we received payroll payments from the loan. Is this legal? Can our employer require us to make up all those hours even those we were forced to close. I've already been making up hours weekly but it doesn't seem ethical.
A:
This is a first impression to me and I hope other employment attorneys will also respond. IMO they cannot make you work now for money they paid you in April, they have to pay you your usual wages for work done now. Otherwise you have a claim for non payment of wages, liquidated damages for non payment of minimum wage, and penalties. For example, lets say they paid you from PPP funds in April, and on August 1, you quit. You would not have to repay them for the money you were paid in April. August wages are August wages. If another attorney has a different take on this, I would welcome their post with a different analysis.
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Neil Pedersen agrees with this answer
1 user found this answer helpful
A:
The fact the employer received funds from a PPP loan in no way changes the normal rules of the California Labor Code. There is no lawful mechanism under the law that allows an employer to pay you months before and then make you work for free to make up for those payments months later. So if the employer is making you make up for the money you received months before by making up those paid hours now, i.e., working for no pay now, that is a violation of the Labor Code. You should be paid at least the minimum wage for all time you work now.
On the other hand, if what you are saying is that you are being required to work many more hours than normal to make up for the lost work while you were only working part time, but the business is paying you at least the minimum wage to perform that work, with appropriate overtime premiums when you work overtime, then there is nothing unlawful about that. As an at will employee your employer can change the terms and conditions of employment at any time and for any reason or even no reason at all, which means the employer can require you to work many more hours than normal - as long as you are paid properly.
Good luck to you.
Maurice Mandel II agrees with this answer
1 user found this answer helpful
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