{"id":9148,"date":"2023-02-03T11:08:30","date_gmt":"2023-02-03T18:08:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sandiegonewsdesk.com\/?p=9148"},"modified":"2023-02-03T12:00:34","modified_gmt":"2023-02-03T19:00:34","slug":"why-californias-well-intentioned-paga-labor-law-needs-reform","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sandiegonewsdesk.com\/?p=9148","title":{"rendered":"Why California\u2019s well-intentioned PAGA labor law needs reform"},"content":{"rendered":"

The original story can be read here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Written by Jennifer Barrera<\/p>\n

Eight billion dollars. That\u2019s the amount of money trial attorneys have leveraged from California employers over the last six years in\u00a0Private Attorneys General Act<\/a>\u00a0settlements.<\/p>\n

Employees rarely see that money, though. They generally take home a minimum amount while attorneys keep hundreds of thousands of dollars for themselves.<\/p>\n

The Labor Commissioner\u2019s office\u00a0agrees<\/a>. In a 2019-20 budget disclosure, the agency noted that \u201cthe substantial majority of proposed private court settlements in PAGA cases reviewed by the (PAGA) Unit fell short of protecting the interests of the state and workers.\u201d<\/p>\n

So why does the California Legislature continue to defend this law?<\/p>\n

In simple terms, PAGA is an 18-year-old law that allows aggrieved workers to file any labor code violation claims on behalf of a group of employees \u2013 even if no one has been harmed. Since it is not classified as a class action, they avoid class certification rules.<\/p>\n

However well-intentioned, PAGA has evolved into an easy way for trial lawyers to shakedown businesses at the expense of workers and their employers.<\/p>\n

State data shows that it\u2019s taking much longer for workers\u2019 claims to be resolved by trial lawyers than when it\u2019s handled by the independent Labor Commissioner\u2019s office. Wage claim cases should be timely since many employees are working paycheck to paycheck and can\u2019t afford to wait two or more years for a wage claim.<\/p>\n

More than a third of all settlements go directly to the attorneys, who\u00a0sometimes walk away with millions<\/a>, while workers end up making substantially less.<\/p>\n

PAGA-related court cases drag out for years and are extremely costly, especially for small mom-and-pop businesses and nonprofits. Even good-faith employers who haven\u2019t harmed their employees or improperly paid them are losing millions of dollars because it is easier and oftentimes less expensive for businesses to settle.<\/p>\n

The easy incentive for trial lawyers to slap a PAGA claim on their labor-related cases has turned PAGA into a cash cow rather than a tool to hold employers accountable for violating workers\u2019 rights. Several unions have even\u00a0sought<\/a>\u00a0carve-outs<\/a>\u00a0because they recognize that PAGA puts \u201cenormous pressure on employers to settle claims regardless of the validity of those claims,\u201d as one bill author puts it.<\/p>\n

California voters will have the option to reform this law with the\u00a0California Fair Pay and Accountability Act initiative<\/a>\u00a0on the 2024 ballot. The measure would place wage and hour claims back into the hands of California\u2019s independent regulator, giving workers 100% of penalty payments and protecting their access to the courts if employees were unsatisfied with the regulator\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, the Legislature could do more to improve the enforcement of the labor code and investigations of\u00a0wage and hour violations<\/a>. The number of vacancies in the Labor Commissioner\u2019s office makes it clear that they need better tools to hire more staff among other ways to help speed up the ruling process. That means properly funding and outfitting the department.<\/p>\n

That is a solution everyone can support, and those positions are funded by employers, not taxpayers.<\/p>\n

The numbers don\u2019t lie. PAGA is making trial lawyers exorbitant amounts of money while leaving very little for workers and doing nothing to ensure businesses are complying with the labor code. California can bolster enforcement, stop shakedowns and improve the recovery process for harmed workers.<\/p>\n

The original story can be read here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

AP Photo\/Eric Risberg<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The original story can be read here. Written by Jennifer Barrera Eight billion dollars. That\u2019s the amount of money trial attorneys have leveraged from California employers over the last six years in\u00a0Private Attorneys General Act\u00a0settlements. Employees rarely see that money, though. They generally take home a minimum amount while attorneys keep hundreds of thousands of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5390,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9148","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinion"],"yoast_head":"\nWhy California\u2019s well-intentioned PAGA labor law needs reform - San Diego News Desk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sandiegonewsdesk.com\/?p=9148\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why California\u2019s well-intentioned PAGA labor law needs reform - San Diego News Desk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The original story can be read here. Written by Jennifer Barrera Eight billion dollars. That\u2019s the amount of money trial attorneys have leveraged from California employers over the last six years in\u00a0Private Attorneys General Act\u00a0settlements. Employees rarely see that money, though. 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