California Labor Law: "Retaliation Means More Ammo for Me," Says Chauffeur

Palm Springs, CA If you have ever booked a limo, you've likely tipped your chauffer anywhere from 15??"20 percent of your bill - either paying your driver directly or adding the tip onto your credit card. But, according to Brent, not all limo companies abide by the California Labor Law and turn over tips to their employees.

"I've been working with this company five years and our gratuities are included; they are automatically billed to the client," says Brent, "but we never get our tips??"and that includes about 30 of my co-workers; we're all in the same boat. And that's just one complaint with this company…"

Brent also says that all the employees have overtime issues with the company, and believe the company is making the most of today's economic problems. "I work 7 days a week, minimum 10 hours per day and sometimes up to 18 hours a day at my regular rate, which is $14 per hour," Brent adds. "I've complained to management on several occasions; the last time I brought up the subject of overtime at our regular chauffer meeting, the owners said, 'At least you have a job.'

"All of us employees are in a Catch-22 situation; - we're danged if we work overtime and danged if we don't. If we move on to another company, it will take two or three weeks before getting a paycheck. In the meantime we might as well keep going on. We get paid every two weeks and according to the California labor code, our tips are supposed to be included. Even though this isn't the job I want, it pays the bills, barely.

"To make matters worse, and the reason I am working so much overtime, is that my wife is sick - she has a brain tumor - so I have to keep up my medical insurance. The way it works with my company is that they take $332 out of my checks every two weeks to cover medical insurance; it would be decent if they added my gratuities. (My bosses know about my wife's illness.)

"My co-workers are afraid of complaining and I can totally understand; they are afraid of retaliation. And six chauffeurs were recently hired but only two are still working. I presume they were smart enough to read through the lines and see what was going on."

(If your employer retaliates against you in any manner whatsoever, that is a violation of the California labor law. For instance, if you object to your boss crediting your tips against your wages, you can file a discrimination/retaliation complaint with the Labor Commissioner's office and/or file a lawsuit in court against your employer. A wage and hour attorney can help.)

"I'm hopeful that I will file a lawsuit against this limo company," says Brent. "I know that I have a strong claim in this matter and I know it will take a little time, but an experienced attorney will probably help and I am told it would probably not take as long as trying to do it myself. I am willing to go the distance because no one should be treated this way. I haven't phoned the California labor board yet, because I know there is going to be retaliation, but at the same time, that will be more ammo for me."

"The driver's gratuities are included as part of the client's bill," says Penney Kemp, manager of Hancock Limousine Services. "We pay our employees all of their tips, every two weeks on their paychecks. We've been in business 12 years and have never done otherwise."

Some limo companies pay their drivers barely more than minimum wage, so they rely on tips to pay their taxes. Unfortunately, some drivers cannot rely on their employers to treat them fairly.