CITY OF SAN JOSE- ENFORCING WAGE STANDARDS THROUGH LABOR COMPLAINTS AND CONTRACTS
1. The City of San Jose
ENFORCING WAGE STANDARDS THROUGH LABOR
COMPLAINTS AND CONTRACTS
2. Main Take Away
¡ Cities have the power to protect wages
everyday through city contracts;
¡ A small team based unit can oversee a vast
amount of city wage enforcement activities;
¡ Wage enforcement improves the city’s
economic stability; and
¡ A charter city committed to wage enforcement
can incentivize smaller localities to pursue its own
wage enforcement policies.
3. Why Does San Jose Protect
Wages for its Citizens
¡ It is beneficial to the health and welfare of all
citizens of San Jose that all workers are paid
wages that enable them not to live in poverty;
¡ The City awards many contracts to employers to
provide services to the public and City
government;
¡ Many service employees in San Jose live at or
near the poverty line; and
¡ The payment of such inadequate compensation
negatively affects the quality of services to the
City and the public.
4. Office of Equality Assurance
The Unit
• 8 staff members total;
• 1 Director;
• 3 staff members oversee
contractual compliance;
• 1 staff member oversees
minimum wage
compliance; and
• Three staff members are
clerical and support.
What It Oversees
¡ Over 1,000 city contracts;
¡ 1.7 Billion dollars in city
business;
¡ The paystubs of every
employer that provides
service and public works to
San Jose; and
¡ Wage enforcement
complaints for several
surrounding cities.
5.
6. Contracts as Enforcement
¡ San Jose has enforced wages through contracts since
1998;
¡ The wages protected by these contracts are called the
living and prevailing wage;
¡ Applies to City service and public works contracts; and
¡ As a condition of being awarded city business, employers
must submit paystubs for all employees working under a
city contract or face paying potential liquidated
damages.
7. Airport
• Airport contracts are still
controlled through the
San Jose’s living and
prevailing wage, but are
lower;
• Purpose of lower wages
is to make SJO more
competitive with
Oakland and San
Francisco Airports.
8. Complaint Based
Enforcement
¡ Applies to the City’s minimum wage ordinance that
was adopted in 2013;
¡ Employee are notified about their rights and ability
to make complaints by mandatory workplace
notices;
¡ A complaint is made with the Office of Equality
Assurance (“OEA”);
¡ OEA sends notice to the employer of a possible
workplace violation;
¡ Employer must respond within 10 days; and
¡ All paystubs for the work site must be produced.
9. Complaint Resolution
Informal (preferred)
¡ The OEA conducts
investigation, which may
include document requests,
interviews, and payroll
records;
¡ Issue a notice of violation;
¡ If employer contests
violation, it may appeal to
the Director of OEA;
¡ Most disputes end at this
phase because the OEA
may waive fees and
liquidated damages.
Formal
¡ The dispute moves to San
Jose City Hall for
adjudication with a hearing
officer;
¡ Employer must deposit the
assessed fine with the City
before a hearing officer is
assigned;
¡ Hearing commences that
allows employer to call
witnesses and produce
evidence; and
¡ Final determination by
hearing officer.
10. Enforcement Results
• 700 wage violations issued;
• $3,400,000 recovered in
back wages;
• $2,100,000 recovered in
liquidated damages; and
• 2 employers barred from
doing business with San
Jose.
11. Local Impact
¡ The cities of Santa Clara, Sunnyvale, Mountain
View, and Palo Alto contract out its wage
enforcement with San Jose because of its size;
¡ This has effectively created a hub and spoke
model for wage enforcement;
¡ This allows smaller cities to leverage wage
violators with the backing of a charter city; and
¡ San Jose provides a template for smaller cities to
draft a minimum wage ordinance.
12. What About
Undocumented Workers?
¡ It is the policy of the OEA that all workers
regardless of immigration status are paid at least
the city’s minimum wage for all work performed
within the city.
¡ The OEA does not inquire about a complainants
immigration status; and
¡ (Informally Stated) Would refuse to disclose an
individuals immigration status to federal
authorities.
