Employment Law – Wage and Hour
Alejandro P. Gutierrez is our lead employment lawyer and he and his team of associates and paralegals have a comprehensive understanding of state and federal employment law and a vast experience in skilled employee representation. Alex and his team are dedicated to fighting for employee rights and represent individuals and employee groups in a wide range of industries such as hospitality services, restaurants, retail, commission sales, and public works. He represents both salaried and hourly employees, from executives to hands-on workers.
Alex counts among his exceptional successes numerous multi-million-dollar settlements and awards in favor of employees in wage-and-hour class actions, totaling over $120,000,000. This includes a $51.2 arbitration award that represents the largest per-person award in California. While he specializes in class representation, and has been appointed as class counsel by multiple state and federal courts, Alex just as zealously represents individual employees who have been wronged by their employer.
Examples of the types of employment issues Alex and his team handle include:
- Misclassification of non-exempt workers as exempt
- Misclassification of employee as independent contractor
- Wrongful termination based on discrimination, age, disability, pregnancy, or taking medical leave
- Off-the-clock wage violations
- Violations of California minimum wage laws
- Failure to reimburse employees for work-related expenses
- Illegal wage deductions
- Failure to provide legally mandated meal and rest breaks
- Failure to pay public employees prevailing wages
- Failure to provide accurate wage statements
- Sales commissions not included in overtime rate
- Representing employees in administrative hearings, including EEOC mediations, the California Labor Board, Unemployment Insurance Appeals, and similar forums.
Our attorneys also work with employers to ensure they are complying with applicable California and federal law and have successfully defended employers in administrative and court settings.