• California workers are protected by numerous labor laws.construction workers image by jimcox40 from Fotolia.com
  
  In California the labor laws governing employers are strict and specific, and merit reading until understood by employer and worker. Certain occupations exist in which children may not participate. Even discharged employees have clear rights regarding the issuing of their last paycheck. Moreover, there are laws governing sales and commission jobs that call for payment at a certain time of month. Violations of these rules by employers can incur expensive fines.
  
  

Child Labor/Prohibited Occupations

• According to Code 11701, the State of California forbids children under 16 from working in construction, or from the delivery of newspapers, packages, commodities or anything else from a motor vehicle.
  
  

Discharge and Wages

• If you fire someone in California, you owe him, regardless of the reason for the termination. According to Section 201 of the California Codes, any final wages are due and payable immediately. In the case of seasonal workers, the law deems you, the employer to have done this if you have paid the wages within 72 hours, or made arrangements by mail upon request of the employees, and on their leaving a current mailing address for you.
  
  

Driver's License Requirements

• If you are to require your employees to have a driver's license as a condition of employment, Sec. 231 of the California Codes says that you must pay for the required physical examination that may be necessary as part of the license application process. The only exception is if the employee in question took the examination prior to applying for the job you offered him.
  
  

Wages and Working Conditions

• According to the California Labor Codes, as an employer you may not require your employees to sign any agreements against disclosing their wages, or their working conditions to any third party. In California this information does not constitute what is known as a "trade secret."
  
  

Penalties

• According to Section 226.6, if you violate a worker's rights according to the law, as an employer, you, or anyone acting on your behalf could face misdemeanor charges. You could go to prison for not more than a year, and face a fine not exceeding $1,000.
  
  Felony charges become involved when it comes to certain infractions involving employee payment. If you promise your employees that you will invest in any retirement, vacation, or health care fund, and have entered into a collective bargaining agreement to do the same--if the court convicts you, you could face up to five years in a state prison and $500 in fines.