2023-104 California Labor Commissioner’s Office — Backlog of Wage Theft Cases
Audit Scope and Objectives
The audit by the California State Auditor will provide independently developed and verified information related to the backlog of wage theft cases at the California Labor Commissioner’s Office. The audit’s scope will include, but not be limited to, the following activities:
- Review and evaluate the laws, rules, and regulations significant to the audit objectives.
- To the extent that data is available, determine the following:
- The size of any current backlog of wage theft claims as well as the size of any backlogs
that have existed over the past five years. - The median time to adjudicate and close claims.
- The extent to which new laws that have increased worker protections have affected
any backlog of claims.
- The size of any current backlog of wage theft claims as well as the size of any backlogs
- Assess staffing levels and salaries within the Labor Commissioner’s office’s wage claims unit
by determining the following:- The current caseload assigned to each employee versus the Labor Commissioner’s
office’s ideal or optimal caseload standard. - Current employee turnover.
- The number of personnel needed to meet the statutorily required claims processing
time frames. - The current number of employees and vacancies, and the number of new employees
hired in the last 12 months. - Whether employee salaries within the wage claim unit are equitable.
- To the extent possible, whether employee retention would improve as a result of
increasing salaries or reclassifying positions.
- The current caseload assigned to each employee versus the Labor Commissioner’s
- Review and assess training procedures and content for new employees in the wage claim
unit. - Evaluate the review process for wage theft claims, identify areas of inefficiency and, if
applicable, recommend changes in those areas. - To the extent possible, determine the number of workers who are able to collect their owed
wages following a judgment and the percentage of those workers who received no wages,
only partial wages, or all wages owed by employers. - Assess the reasons why workers cannot collect wages owed to them after a judgment and
determine whether the Labor Commissioner’s office can improve the resources available to
workers seeking to recover those wages. - Determine the extent of the Labor Commissioner’s office’s authority to compel employers
to pay owed wages after a judgment. Determine how the Labor Commissioner’s office uses
its authority and whether the State may improve on that authority. - Review and assess any other issues that are significant to the audit.