Alaska Airlines has been ordered to pay $25,010,158 in penalties to flight attendants who claimed their pay stubs were not up to code. The Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) in California allows affected employees to file lawsuits to recover penalties for themselves and other similarly situated employees when there are Labor Code violations. Specifically, this lawsuit alleged that Alaska Airlines failed to provide employees with information on their pay stubs that explained the source of all wages earned which is required by Labor Code Section 226, or more commonly known as the California pay stub law.
The flight attendant claimed she was unable to understand how the airline calculated her pay from her wage statements. She reached out to them multiple times for clarification but Alaska Airlines failed to provide sufficient explanation. Even though the airline had a complex coding system to determine the flight attendants pay structure, the California labor code still requires companies to furnish clear and proper pay stubs to ensure their workers can understand their pay. In this case, Alaska Airlines failed to include the rate received per unit or hour, the total hours worked, and the total trips for pay earned. This allegedly caused employees to believe they may not have been getting paid correctly for all of their hours worked.
Understanding your pay stubs is the first step in determining if you are being paid properly or not. Whether or not you live in California, your state has laws that monitor how wage statements should be furnished. Similar pay stub laws exist in other states, including New York. If you need help understanding your pay stub and fear you may not have been paid correctly, call an employment attorney as soon as possible. Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP offers a free and confidential phone consultation to help determine your rights. Call (212)300-0375 and speak to an available representative now or visit our website for additional information.