Employer record, U.S. Labor Department investigations

Cold Stone Creamery Wage and Hour Cases in California

Benjamin Eghbali, Esq.Legal notes by Benjamin Eghbali, Esq.

Cold Stone Creamery: 9 investigations, $26,726 in back wages for 59 workers, latest closed Aug 3, 2023.

Every federal wage and hour case closed in California since 2004 and a handful before: 30,596 investigations, 23,910 employers, $472,441,289 in back wages for 335,130 workers.

Cold Stone Creamery wage and hour record at a glance

Cold Stone Creamery appears in 9 concluded Wage and Hour Division investigations in California, closed between Nov 8, 2004 and Aug 3, 2023. 7 of them found violations, 92 in all, and the employer agreed to pay $26,726 in back wages to 59 workers, plus $78,047 in civil money penalties. Of the back wages, $20,917 was unpaid overtime and $1,733 unpaid minimum wage under the federal standard. The largest single case closed Mar 22, 2010 in San Bruno with $11,340 for 1 workers. 21 minors were involved in child labor findings. That places the employer at #3,394 of 23,910 California employers in the database by back wages.

Industry as coded by the Division: Ice Cream and Frozen Dessert Manufacturing; Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars; Other Specialty Food Stores. Laws involved: FLSA, child labor.

Every case, newest first

Case closedPeriod investigatedCityFindingsBack wagesWorkers paidPenaltiesLaws
Aug 3, 2023Aug 2021 to Aug 2023Sunnyvale57 violations$4,07646$70,534FLSA, child labor
Jan 7, 2020Jan 2018 to Jan 2020San Ramon14 violations00$7,513FLSA, child labor
Aug 13, 2019Aug 2017 to Aug 2019Lancaster5 violations000FLSA, child labor
Dec 27, 2017Dec 2017 to Dec 2017Elk Grove7 violations$1,73370FLSA
Apr 30, 2010Apr 2008 to Apr 2010San Francisco3 violations$6,75420FLSA
Apr 30, 2010Apr 2008 to Apr 2010San Francisco4 violations$2,82330FLSA
Mar 22, 2010Mar 2008 to Mar 2010San Bruno2 violations$11,34010FLSA
Mar 14, 2006Jan 2006 to Mar 2006Sacramentono violations found000
Nov 8, 2004Nov 2002 to Nov 2004West Covinano violations found000

Also filed as: Ultimate Desserts Inc.; Ice Cream Entertainment; Lion's Express; Ghumman, Umar; SGQ, Inc.; SRA Venture Corporation; CICS INC.

Local pages: Sunnyvale employment lawyer, Lancaster employment lawyer.

How to read this record

Each row is one federal investigation. Period investigated is the span of payroll the Division reviewed, usually two years back from the complaint. Back wages is what the employer agreed to pay for that period at the federal rate; penalties went to the government, not to workers.

Back wages computed under the federal law are usually a fraction of the California number for the same hours: the state minimum is $16.90 in 2026, overtime starts after 8 hours in a day, and each missed meal or rest period adds an hour of pay. Workers paid in these cases may still be owed that difference, and the federal release form covers only the federal claim.

Full explainer: what a Labor Department case is, and what it is not.

If you work, or worked, at Cold Stone Creamery

Pull together your pay stubs and your own record of hours for the last three years, request your pay records in writing (the employer has 21 days under Labor Code 226), and keep any WH-58 receipt from a Labor Department payment. A free review tells you in one call whether the California numbers exceed what was paid, whether break premiums and waiting time penalties apply, and whether anything that happened after you complained counts as retaliation. Call (800) 371-3088 or send your stubs.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division enforcement database, California cases. Record last checked Oct 30, 2026. Back to the wage theft tracker.

About this data: Cases come from the U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division enforcement database (WHD compliance actions concluded since fiscal year 2005, California employers only), published by the Department of Labor and reloaded here every month. "Back wages" are amounts the employer agreed to pay at the close of the investigation; "penalties" are civil money penalties assessed. An investigation that found no violation is listed as such. The database does not include California Labor Commissioner cases or private lawsuits. This page is general information, not legal advice about your situation.

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