State fines janitorial firm on wage violations

The state Labor Commissioner’s Office issued citations amounting to nearly $460,000 against a Sacramento-area janitorial firm with customers including grocery stores in Madera, Merced and Los Banos.

The agency said the violations involved 12 workers at Norcal Floor Services, which was a subcontractor providing janitorial services for 15 Food 4 Less and Rancho San Miguel markets in the Central Valley from Sacramento to Madera and in the Monterey County town of Greenfield. A two-year investigation and wage audit culminated in the citations for paying some of its janitors – many of them recent immigrants from El Salvador – an average of $7.53 per hour. The company is accused of threatening to fire workers who complained about working up to seven days in a row every week for up to nine hours a day without any legally required breaks.

The sanctions cover $456,073 in unpaid minimum wages and overtime, rest and meal periods. An additional $3,500 in penalties was assessed for violating the state’s minimum wage, overtime and rest-period laws, and failing to issue itemized pay stubs.

According to the California secretary of state, the company has also been suspended by the state Franchise Tax Board for failing to meet its tax obligations.

This story was originally published August 17, 2015 at 1:30 PM with the headline "State fines janitorial firm on wage violations."