Supreme Court of California

In an action to recover unpaid minimum wages under Labor Code section 1194 and other theories, brought by seasonal agricultural workers against produce merchants and a farm owner, summary judgment in favor of defendants is affirmed as: 1) in actions under section 1194 to recover unpaid minimum wages, the IWC's wage orders do generally define the employment relationship, and thus who may be liable; and 2) here, an examination of the wage orders' language, history and place in the context of California wage law makes clear that those orders do not incorporate the federal definition of employment.

Appellate Information

• Decided 05/20/2010
• Published 05/20/2010

Judges

• WERDEGAR, J.

Court

• Supreme Court of California

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Law Offices of Talamantes/Villegas/Carrera, Mark Talamantes, Jennifer Reisch; California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc., William G. Hoerger, Michael C. Blank; California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, Inc., and Julia Montgomery for Plaintiffs and Appellants., Virginia Ruiz for Farmworker Justice, National Employment Law Project and United Farm Workers as Amici Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants., Schneider & Wallace, Joshua Konecky and W.H. “Hank” Wilson IV for Centro Legal de La Raza, Golden Gate University Women's Employment Rights Clinic, The Katharine & George Alexander Community Law Center, The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles, The Legal Aid Society of San Franciso-Employment Law Center and Neighborhood Services of Los Angeles County as Amici Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants., Law Offices of Carroll & Scully, Donald C. Carroll and Charles P. Scully II for California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants.


• For Appellees:
  
• Anastassiou & Associates, Jane E. Bednar and Effie F. Anastassiou for Defendant and Respondent Apio, Inc., Western Growers Law Group, Noland, Hamerly, Etienne & Hoss and Terrence R. O'Connor for Defendants and Respondents Corky N. Combs and Larry D. Combs dba Combs Distribution Co., and Juan Ruiz., Monte B. Lake for California Farm Bureau Federation, Agricultural Council of California, California Citrus Mutual, California Grape and Tree Fruit League, Grower-Shipper Association of Central California, Imperial Valley Vegetable Growers Association, Nisei Farmers League, Ventura County Agricultural Association, Western Growers Association and Wine Institute as Amici Curiae on behalf of Defendants and Respondents.