Employer record, U.S. Labor Department investigations

Stater Bros. Markets Wage and Hour Cases in California

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

Stater Bros. Markets: 3 investigations, $498,549 in back wages for 2,261 workers, latest closed Apr 27, 2008.

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.

Stater Bros. Markets wage and hour record at a glance

Stater Bros. Markets appears in 3 concluded Wage and Hour Division investigations in California, closed between Jul 29, 2007 and Apr 27, 2008. All of them found violations, 4,077 in all, and the employer agreed to pay $498,549 in back wages to 2,261 workers, plus $54,340 in civil money penalties. Of the back wages, $247,154 was unpaid overtime and $251,395 unpaid minimum wage under the federal standard. The largest single case closed Jul 29, 2007 in Colton with $328,042 for 2,029 workers. The Division flagged one case as repeat or willful. 18 minors were involved in child labor findings. That places the employer at #125 of 23,910 California employers in the database by back wages.

Industry as coded by the Division: Supermarkets and Other Grocery (except Convenience) Stores. Laws involved: FLSA, child labor.

Every case, newest first

Case closedPeriod investigatedCityFindingsBack wagesWorkers paidPenaltiesLaws
Apr 27, 2008May 2006 to Apr 2008San Bernardino14 violations repeat$126,64513$2,860FLSA
Sep 23, 2007Aug 2007 to Sep 2007San Bernardino358 violations$43,8622190FLSA
Jul 29, 2007Jun 2005 to Jul 2007Colton3,705 violations$328,0422,029$51,480FLSA, child labor

Also filed as: Stater Bros. Holdings, Inc.

Local pages: San Bernardino 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 Stater Bros. Markets

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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