Employer Audit Compliance Service

THE NEED FOR A LABOR LAW COMPLIANCE AUDIT IS REAL!

PROTECT YOUR BUSINESS WITH ECJ’S NEW EMPLOYER AUDIT COMPLIANCE SERVICE

Why do California employers need to conduct audits of their payroll, timekeeping and labor practices?  Since 2004, the Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) has terrorized employers by permitting individual employees to sue employers on behalf of themselves, other employees and the State of California to recover civil penalties for California Labor Code violations. Thankfully, employers were given some relief last year when Assembly Bill 2288 and Senate Bill 92 were signed into law.  These bills amended PAGA to provide employers with an opportunity to minimize the potential penalties under the statute.  But to take advantage of this opportunity, employers must act proactively and take “all reasonable steps” to be in compliance.  Those “reasonable steps” are defined to include whether an employer conducted periodic payroll audits and acted in response to the results of the audit, disseminated lawful written policies, trained supervisors on wage order compliance, and took appropriate corrective action with regard to supervisors.

Preparation is Critical!

If all reasonable steps are taken, PAGA penalties will be capped at $15.00 per violation if the employer does so before receiving the notice of violation, or capped at $30.00 if the employer takes reasonable steps within 60 days after receiving notice of PAGA violations.[1]  Not only that, but taking these reasonable steps should also serve to reduce the risk of expensive wage and hour claims—and the likelihood of success of such claims—in general.

What We Offer

Package 1:      Basic PAGA Compliance Plan

Includes:

• A payroll audit based on a sampling of wage statements and timekeeping records taken from the last 12 months to assess compliance with overtime and meal and rest period premium requirements, and paid sick time calculations;
• A review of the employer’s written wage and hour policies and procedures; and
• A review of wage training materials used by the employer over the prior 12 months.

Package 2:      Intermediate PAGA Compliance Plan

Includes:

• A payroll audit based on a sampling of wage statements and timekeeping records taken from the last 12 months to assess compliance with overtime and meal and rest period premium requirements, and paid sick time calculations;
• A review of the employer’s written policies and procedures;
• An update of the employer’s written policies and procedures (as needed);
• Preparation of wage training materials for employer implementation; and
• A review of corrective actions taken by the employer in connection with wage and hour compliance training.

Package 3:      Advanced PAGA Compliance Plan

Includes:

• A payroll audit based on a sampling of wage statements and timekeeping records taken from the last 12 months to assess compliance with overtime and meal and rest period premium requirements, and paid sick time calculations;
• A review of the employer’s written wage and hour policies and procedures;
• An update of the employer’s written wage and hour policies and procedures (as needed);
• Preparation of wage and hour training materials and conducting a wage training seminar for supervisory employees on the employer’s behalf; and
• A review of corrective actions taken by the employer in connection with wage and hour compliance training.

Package 4:      Comprehensive PAGA and HR Compliance Plan

Includes:

• A payroll audit based on a sampling of wage statements and timekeeping records taken from the prior 2 years to assess compliance with overtime and meal and rest period premium requirements, and paid sick time calculations;
• A review of the employer’s written wage and hour policies and procedures;
• An update of the employer’s written wage and hour policies and procedures (as needed);
• Preparation of wage and hour training materials and conducting a wage training seminar for supervisory employees on employer’s behalf; and
• Additional Human Resources auditing to include:
• An assessment of all human resources files and work authorization forms;
• A review and assessment of hiring and termination processes
• A review and assessment of all of employer’s employment policies and procedures, including timekeeping and recording employee time, exempt/non-exempt classifications, incentive bonusses or commission plans, and other critical areas;
• Review and assessment of mandatory job postings both in the workplace and to the public;
• Review and assessment of mandatory employment record retention;
• Review and assessment of required written illness and injury prevention and workplace violence prevention plans;
• Review and assessment of recommended or required management trainings, including sexual and unlawful harassment prevention training, workplace violence prevention training, and indoor/outdoor heat illness prevention training (as applicable).

Price estimates for each Package are available upon request and depend on the nature of the employer, the size of the employer, the number of physical locations for the employer, among other factors.

Employer Audit Compliance Service Order Form

[1] It is important to be mindful that the PAGA penalty cap does not apply and the penalties are subject to statutory increases if 1) there was a prior determination that the employer’s policy/practice was unlawful within the last 5 years, or 2) the employer’s conduct is determined by a court to have been malicious, fraudulent, or oppressive.

For questions and order form submissions email, marketing@ecjlaw.com.