Empire Farm Labor Contractor wage and hour record at a glance
Empire Farm Labor Contractor appears in 3 concluded Wage and Hour Division investigations in California, closed between Jul 12, 2006 and Nov 30, 2023. All of them found violations, 255 in all, and the employer agreed to pay $79,180 in back wages to 112 workers, plus $63,765 in civil money penalties. The largest single case closed Nov 30, 2023 in Salinas with $40,920 for 33 workers. That places the employer at #1,173 of 23,910 California employers in the database by back wages.
Industry as coded by the Division: Farm Labor Contractors and Crew Leaders. Laws involved: H-2A, farm labor (MSPA).
Every case, newest first
| Case closed | Period investigated | City | Findings | Back wages | Workers paid | Penalties | Laws |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 30, 2023 | Feb 2023 to Nov 2023 | Salinas | 166 violations | $40,920 | 33 | $43,276 | H-2A |
| May 10, 2019 | May 2018 to May 2019 | Salinas | 85 violations | $38,260 | 79 | $18,414 | H-2A, farm labor (MSPA) |
| Jul 12, 2006 | Jul 2004 to Jul 2006 | Mc Farland | 4 violations | 0 | 0 | $2,075 | farm labor (MSPA) |
Also filed as: Empire Farm Labor Contractor, Inc.; Empire Farm Labor Contractor LLC.
Local pages: Salinas 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 Empire Farm Labor Contractor
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.