Employer record, U.S. Labor Department investigations

Department of Motor Vehicles Wage and Hour Cases in California

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

Department of Motor Vehicles: 4 investigations, $0 in back wages for 0 workers, latest closed Apr 5, 2024.

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.

Department of Motor Vehicles wage and hour record at a glance

Department of Motor Vehicles appears in 4 concluded Wage and Hour Division investigations in California, closed between Oct 5, 2012 and Apr 5, 2024. 2 of them found violations, 9 in all, and the employer agreed to pay $0 in back wages to 0 workers, with no civil money penalty assessed. The largest single case closed Apr 5, 2024 in Fresno with $0 for 0 workers. That places the employer at #12,341 of 23,910 California employers in the database by back wages.

Industry as coded by the Division: Other State Governmental Facilities; Other General Government Support. Laws involved: FMLA.

Every case, newest first

Case closedPeriod investigatedCityFindingsBack wagesWorkers paidPenaltiesLaws
Apr 5, 2024Mar 2023 to Apr 2024Fresno4 violations000FMLA
Apr 17, 2020Apr 2020 to Apr 2020Norcono violations found000
Apr 1, 2015Apr 2014 to Apr 2015Santa Monicano violations found000
Oct 5, 2012Sep 2012 to Oct 2012Seaside5 violations000FMLA

Also filed as: State of California Department Motor Vehicles; State of California; California, State of.

Local pages: Fresno employment lawyer, Santa Monica 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 Department of Motor Vehicles

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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