California Labor Code section 558.1 imposes individual liability for unpaid minimum wages, overtime wages, meal and rest period premiums, reporting time, expense reimbursement, liquidated damages, wage statement damages and penalties, and waiting time penalties pursuant to Labor Code section 203. This law was enacted to discourage employers from not paying their employees all wages due under the risk of having exposure of their personal assets to satisfy those types of claims.
Section 558.1 provides as follows:
(a) Any employer or other person acting on behalf of an employer, who violates, or causes to be violated, any provision regulating minimum wages or hours and days of work in any order of the Industrial Welfare Commission, or violates, or causes to be violated, sections 203, 226, 226. 7, 1193.6, 1194, or 2802, may be held liable as the employer for such
violation.
(b) For purposes of this section, the term “other person acting on behalf of an employer” is limited to a natural person who is an owner, director, officer, or managing agent of the employer, and the term “managing agent” has the same meaning as in subdivision (b) of Section 3294 of the Civil Code.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the definition of employer underexisting law.
This law means that an individual coporate officer or business owner can be held personally liable for various unpaid wages if it is established that he had part in failing to pay as required by law. In the event an employer attempts to avoid a judgment arising from a wage violation, the employee or the Labor Commissioner is entitled to enforce such liability against those individuals who “violates, or causes to be violated” the same laws. the minimum wage laws. However, such liability may not be necessary if the employee is able to collect his or her unpaid wages from the employer.