How far back can I recover unpaid wages in San Diego?

California wage claims generally reach back three years, and up to four years under the Unfair Competition Law. Some penalties have shorter deadlines, so acting promptly helps preserve the oldest unpaid amounts.

I'm paid a salary — can I still be owed overtime?

Yes, often. A salary does not automatically make you exempt. Exemption depends on your actual job duties and meeting a minimum salary threshold. Many salaried San Diego employees are misclassified and are entitled to unpaid overtime.

How is California overtime different from federal overtime?

California calculates overtime by the day. You earn 1.5x after 8 hours in a workday and 2x after 12 hours, in addition to the 40-hour weekly standard. Missed or interrupted meal and rest breaks also each trigger an hour of premium pay.

Should I file with the Labor Commissioner or go to court?

Either is possible. The California Labor Commissioner (DLSE) offers an administrative wage claim process with a local San Diego office, while a lawsuit in the San Diego County Superior Court may suit larger or complex cases. We can recommend the right path.

What will it cost to pursue my claim?

Most unpaid-wage cases are handled on contingency, with no upfront fee. California law also shifts attorney's fees onto an employer who violated the wage laws, so a prevailing employee can often have those fees paid by the employer.

San Diego Wage and Hour Lawyer

San Diego's tourism, hospitality, healthcare, biotech, and military-support industries employ a vast workforce, and many of those workers are not paid for everything they do. If your employer denied overtime, cut your meal or rest breaks, misclassified you as exempt or as a contractor, or failed to deliver your final paycheck on time, California law may entitle you to back wages and penalties. Attorney Mihran M. Ghazaryan represents San Diego employees, not employers. California guarantees daily overtime, premium pay for missed breaks, and attorney's fees shifted onto a violating employer. Most cases run on contingency, so nothing is owed up front. Consultations available in English, Armenian, and Russian.

Unpaid Wages & Overtime matters in San Diego

The wage-vulnerable sectors of San Diego

San Diego's economy leans heavily on tourism and hospitality — the hotels, restaurants, and attractions of the Gateway, Gaslamp, and coastal districts — along with a major healthcare system, biotech and research, defense and military-support contractors, and a large retail and service base. Hospitality and tourism are classic settings for off-the-clock work, interrupted meal periods during peak service, and overtime miscalculations across split and seasonal shifts. Healthcare and senior-care roles see automatic meal-break deductions for breaks that were never fully taken. Research and contractor roles are where "salaried, so no overtime" misclassification often hides.

This is general industry context, not an allegation against any particular San Diego employer. It describes where California wage law and ordinary workplace practice most often come into conflict.

What California law requires

California overtime is daily, not just weekly. You earn 1.5x your regular rate after 8 hours in a workday and after 40 hours in a week, and 2x after 12 hours in one day. Non-exempt employees are owed an uninterrupted 30-minute meal period before the end of the fifth hour and paid 10-minute rest breaks. A missed, late, or interrupted meal or rest break entitles you to one hour of premium pay for that day.

A salary alone does not make you exempt — that depends on your real duties and a minimum salary level. Calling a worker "exempt," or treating an employee as an "independent contractor" to avoid overtime, is misclassification. Off-the-clock work is compensable no matter how the employer records it.

Final pay and the San Diego County courts

California requires prompt payment of final wages when a job ends. An employer's willful failure to pay everything owed triggers waiting-time penalties under Labor Code §203, up to 30 days of additional wages. Wage claims generally reach back three years, and up to four years under the Unfair Competition Law.

San Diego is the seat of San Diego County, and civil wage lawsuits are heard in the San Diego County Superior Court at its downtown civil division. You may also file an administrative claim with the California Labor Commissioner (DLSE), which maintains a local office. Attorney Ghazaryan can advise which path fits your case.

Cost and next steps

Because California shifts wage-case attorney's fees onto a violating employer, these claims are usually handled on contingency — no upfront cost, payment from a recovery or fee award. Keep your pay stubs, schedules, and time records, and ask for a confidential review of what you may be owed.

How Mihran M. Ghazaryan helps with unpaid wages & overtime

Mihran M. Ghazaryan reconstructs what you were actually owed from pay stubs, schedules, and the hours you really worked — the overtime, off-the-clock time, and missed breaks an employer hoped you wouldn't track. He tests a 'salaried' or 'contractor' label against your real duties, and pursues the penalties California stacks on top of unpaid wages. These cases are typically contingency, with fees often shifted onto the employer that broke the law.

Types of wage and hour claims we handle

Unpaid overtime & off-the-clock work

California overtime starts after 8 hours in a day (not just 40 in a week), plus double-time rules. Work performed before clocking in or after clocking out is compensable.

Meal & rest break violations

Employees are generally owed a 30-minute meal period and paid rest breaks; missed or interrupted breaks trigger premium pay.

Misclassification & final pay

Being labeled 'exempt' or an independent contractor to avoid overtime, and waiting-time penalties when final wages aren't paid on time.

What you may be able to recover

Every wage claim case is different, but California law lets wronged employees pursue several categories of relief. We document each one — pay records, performance reviews, communications — so nothing is left on the table.

Back pay and lost benefits

Wages, commissions, and benefits you lost from the date of the wrongful act — a core remedy in wrongful-termination and discrimination claims.

Front pay

Future earnings you're likely to lose when reinstatement isn't realistic, measured until you can reasonably be expected to find comparable work.

Emotional distress

Compensation for the anxiety, humiliation, and harm to wellbeing that unlawful treatment at work can cause.

Penalties and punitive damages

Statutory penalties for wage violations, and — where an employer acted with malice or oppression — punitive damages meant to deter the conduct.

Attorney's fees and costs

Many California employment statutes shift the employee's reasonable attorney's fees and costs onto an employer that broke the law.

Reinstatement and policy change

Where it fits the case, getting your job back or forcing the employer to correct the practice that harmed you.

How we work

Free, confidential consultation

We listen first and tell you plainly whether you appear to have a claim. The conversation is confidential and there's no fee to have it — and we're careful if you're still employed.

Preserve the record

Offer letters, handbooks, performance reviews, emails and texts, pay stubs, and a dated timeline. The contemporaneous record is what wins an employment case, so we lock it down early.

Administrative exhaustion and the demand

FEHA claims generally require a complaint with the Civil Rights Department and a right-to-sue notice first. We handle that step, then present a documented demand to the employer.

Litigation when necessary

Many matters resolve through negotiation or mediation. When an employer won't be reasonable, we file and prepare the case fully — which is usually what moves the number.

What to do right away

Keep your pay stubs, schedules, and any record of hours actually worked.

Note when you missed or were interrupted during meal and rest breaks.

Save communications about your classification, duties, and pay.

Don't rely on memory alone — contemporaneous records drive these claims.

Talk to a lawyer about whether to file with the Labor Commissioner or in court.

The information on this website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.