7Rock
New Member
- Jurisdiction
- California
I was fired last week from a construction company that I have worked for as a welder full time for almost two years.
The company requires me to pick up a welding truck from their yard every morning, drive it to whatever job site we are working at, and return it after work.
Every company I have worked for in the past has paid from the time I leave the yard in the morning until I get back in the afternoon.
This company only pays when we get to the job site at 7:00 AM and stops pay at 3:30, even though we are required to leave the yard at 5:00-5:30 in the morning and don't get back until 5:30-6:00 in the afternoon.
I have to drive a half an hour east to the yard every morning to pick up the Welding truck, then I drive west right past my house again to go to the job site, then the reverse in the afternoon.
I know driving to the yard to pick up the truck is not paid travel time, but going there and back cost me an extra two hours a day over what it would take me just to drive straight from my home to the job site.
I recently found out that my prior employers had paid from the time we picked up the truck from the yard till the time we got back was because that is the law.
When I brought that up to my employer he got angry and threatened to have somebody else drive the truck to the job. I said it would save me two hours a day if he did.
He then said he'd work something out.
A few days later I asked if another employee, who sometimes drive another truck out to the job sites, who was riding with me that day could just drop me off at home on the way back to the yard since my house is right off the freeway.
It would save me an hour, and the other employee had to go to the yard anyway, since he lives past the yard.
I asked the foreman (the owner's son-in-law) if it was okay.
He just said "Fine, whatever."
We had off the next day because of rain, and he was going to call that next night to let us know where the next job site was.
He never called.
I called the owner the next day, and he said that they had found another welder to replace me.
I do great work, and my employer has told me many times how much he loves my work.
There was never a problem until I mentioned wanting to get paid for driving the truck.
The day I asked if the other employee could drop me off was the last day I worked.
When I went in to pick up my checks, the wanted me to sign a paper saying I had been paid for all my hours and had been given all my rest/meal breaks.
We were very rarely given a lunch break, yet they deducted a 1/2 hours pay every day.
None of the employees were happy about working through lunch then not getting paid for it, but they were all afraid to say anything.
I wanna know if I have a case for retaliation and wrongful termination, and if I can get back pay for all the travel time and meals I had to work through?
Thank you.
The company requires me to pick up a welding truck from their yard every morning, drive it to whatever job site we are working at, and return it after work.
Every company I have worked for in the past has paid from the time I leave the yard in the morning until I get back in the afternoon.
This company only pays when we get to the job site at 7:00 AM and stops pay at 3:30, even though we are required to leave the yard at 5:00-5:30 in the morning and don't get back until 5:30-6:00 in the afternoon.
I have to drive a half an hour east to the yard every morning to pick up the Welding truck, then I drive west right past my house again to go to the job site, then the reverse in the afternoon.
I know driving to the yard to pick up the truck is not paid travel time, but going there and back cost me an extra two hours a day over what it would take me just to drive straight from my home to the job site.
I recently found out that my prior employers had paid from the time we picked up the truck from the yard till the time we got back was because that is the law.
When I brought that up to my employer he got angry and threatened to have somebody else drive the truck to the job. I said it would save me two hours a day if he did.
He then said he'd work something out.
A few days later I asked if another employee, who sometimes drive another truck out to the job sites, who was riding with me that day could just drop me off at home on the way back to the yard since my house is right off the freeway.
It would save me an hour, and the other employee had to go to the yard anyway, since he lives past the yard.
I asked the foreman (the owner's son-in-law) if it was okay.
He just said "Fine, whatever."
We had off the next day because of rain, and he was going to call that next night to let us know where the next job site was.
He never called.
I called the owner the next day, and he said that they had found another welder to replace me.
I do great work, and my employer has told me many times how much he loves my work.
There was never a problem until I mentioned wanting to get paid for driving the truck.
The day I asked if the other employee could drop me off was the last day I worked.
When I went in to pick up my checks, the wanted me to sign a paper saying I had been paid for all my hours and had been given all my rest/meal breaks.
We were very rarely given a lunch break, yet they deducted a 1/2 hours pay every day.
None of the employees were happy about working through lunch then not getting paid for it, but they were all afraid to say anything.
I wanna know if I have a case for retaliation and wrongful termination, and if I can get back pay for all the travel time and meals I had to work through?
Thank you.