“I quit.” These words from an employee leads to a string of questions from an employer. What do I need to pay the employee? How quickly do I have to do it? Can I wait until the next batch of payroll checks are processed? Do I have to cut the employee a separate check? What happens if I do it wrong? These are all legitimate questions because the laws in California are very specific about what an employer must do and the penalties for failing to do it correctly in the eyes of the law. A recent appellate opinion (Nishiki v. Danko Meredith, APC) is a great example of how a small inconsistency in the final paycheck that ultimately meant the employee is owed only $2,250 in penalties, resulted in the employer having to pay over $86,000 to the former employee in attorney’s fees. That’s 3,822% of the penalty itself. The inconsistent final pay check What happened in Nishiki could have happened to any one of us.  In this case, plaintiff, who worked as a paralegal at the defendant law … Continue reading →