The California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) issued minimum wage citations to farm labor employers pursuant to Cal. Lab. Code § 1197.1 despite the fact that it was undisputed that the employers paid all of the employees at least the minimum wage by payday. The DLSE contended that the failure to pay wages on the dates the employees were discharged or within 72 hours of when they quit subjected the employers to waiting time penalties and constituted independent minimum wage violations that justified the issuance of the citations. The trial court granted a peremptory writ directing the DLSE to dismiss the citations with prejudice. The Court of Appeal affirmed, holding that to conclude otherwise would subject an employer to a double penalty for a single violation.
