Wage Law

We love Chinatown, but it is teeming with employers who oppress their laborers and refuse to pay minimum wage and overtime, or violate other labor laws such as those requiring meal and rest breaks. The latest violator is Dick Lee Pastry, a poorly reviewed restaurant in San Franscisco's Chinatown. Dick Lee Pastry was recently ordered to pay back wages and penalties after forcing employees to work up to 80 hours per week for under $4 per hour. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Dick Lee Pastry paid $525,000 to settle the wage theft claims. But it wasn't the first, and it won't be the last.

Places with large concentrations of immigrant workers are notorious violators of California wage and hour laws. Sadly, this is even true when the employers are also immigrants, even of the same ethnicity. The more vulnerable the worker, the higher the probability that they are going to be exploited.