Los Angeles employment lawyer

Vacation Pay in California

In the state of California, employers are not required to provide their employees with paid vacation days or with paid sick leave. Nevertheless, many employers find that providing their employees with both paid vacation and sick leave is an important benefit and choose to do so voluntarily.

When an employer provides his or her employees with paid vacation leave, earned but unused vacation leave must be paid to an employee upon the termination of his or her employment. However, employers can specify, in advance, a certain dollar amount of vacation pay that can be earned.

Understanding California Law

Vacation leave can be seen as a very attractive work benefit, and often attracts qualified workers to a particular job.

Since vacation pay is not required in the state of California, when employers voluntarily provide it to their employees (most often full time workers), it is technically considered part of the employees’ “earned wages.” As such, there are two characteristics that apply to this compensation:

• Employers must pay any employee their earned but unused vacation time when that employee leaves his or her job (whether they choose to leave or if they are fired)
• There can not be any forfeiting of earned vacation time

When an employer chooses to provide his or her employees with vacation time, there are a few areas of control that the employer has over this vacation time. Primarily, the employer has the right to control when vacations are taken. This control is put in place so that at company is not put in a position where all its employees take their vacation leave at the same time, leaving the office un-staffed.

Contact a Los Angeles Employment Lawyer

If you have experienced an employer who has failed to provide you with your earned wages or has forced you to forfeit earned vacation time, contact Los Angeles employment lawyer Perry Smith at 888-356-2529 to discuss your situation with a qualified and experienced legal professional.