Folsom, CA asked in Employment Law for California

Q: The employer agrees with the hours worked but won't pay employee because the company says it hasn't received payment.

My sister residing in CA worked remotely transcribing for an Illinois company. They started having financial issues a few years ago and did things like move out scheduled pay dates. They made payroll for a while then started missing those dates. Last year my sister was behind 3 or more paychecks on average weeks late.

This entire year my sister has yet to receive a check! They would not answer calls nor email. They would have some workload manager call to ask her to prioritize work but my sister finally told them she was on strike since she hadn't been paid for 4 months. She has filed a claim with the Labor Department for the pay but was told not to expect anything for 6+ months.

The issue (other than not receiving pay for undisputed work) is that on paper she is still an employee. It appears they are still paying insurance. The problem is she can't file for unemployment since technically she is still employed. If she quits no unemployment. What can she do?

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1 Lawyer Answer
Neil Pedersen
Neil Pedersen
Answered
  • Westminster, CA
  • Licensed in California

A: The good news here is that you are completely incorrect when you say she cannot collect unemployment because she is technically employed. You do not have to be unemployed to get UI benefits. You simply have to establish that you are not working and not getting paid or that you are under employed. Also you say if she quits she gets no UI benefits. Not true. If you quit for good cause that does not disqualify you from UI benefits. Not being paid for 6 months is going to be good cause.

Have your sister apply for UI benefits and start looking for another job.

Good luck to both of you.

Maya L. Serkova agrees with this answer

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