First: is anything time-critical right now?
If any of these is true, act now and strongly consider attorney review before you do anything else. Waiting can cost you the claim.
- You were served with a lawsuit, an arbitration demand, or an agency notice that has a response deadline
- A severance agreement has a signing or revocation deadline ticking
- You could lose access to evidence (email, messages, timekeeping) if your account is closed
- You received a Notice of Determination from EDD (unemployment) — the appeal window is only 30 days
- Anyone threatened you, including a threat about your immigration status
- There is a risk of violence, coercion, or trafficking
- You are a government, federal, or union employee, or covered by a collective bargaining agreement (different rules apply)
- You signed an arbitration agreement or a release/severance
- You already filed a complaint with an agency
- Your employer may be closing or going bankrupt
Some employment deadlines are extremely short. An unemployment appeal is 30 days. A Labor Commissioner retaliation complaint is one year. Because the real deadline depends on exactly what happened and when, treat the earliest possible date as your deadline and confirm it fast.
Tell the Analyst what happened
In your own words, like you would tell a friend. It adjusts to you: plain answers if you want plain answers, statutes and citations if you ask for them. It will tell you honestly when a problem needs a real lawyer.
Please keep it anonymous. Do not enter Social Security numbers, bank or account numbers, passwords, or full immigration identifiers. Use placeholders like "my employer" instead of real names. This is a public information tool, not a confidential attorney channel.
Your rights, by situation
Open the one that fits. Each shows the core rule, the likely deadline, where it is handled, and the official form or page. Every rule is tied to a primary source. This is legal information, not advice about your specific facts.
Unpaid wages or minimum wage as short as 2–3 yr
The rule: If you were paid less than the legal minimum wage or not paid wages you earned, you can recover the unpaid amount plus interest, and generally attorney's fees and costs. An agreement to accept less than minimum wage does not make it legal.
Deadline: Generally 3 years for minimum-wage and overtime claims; 2 years if the promise to pay more than minimum wage was only oral; 4 years on a written contract. The clock usually runs from each unpaid payday. A related unfair-competition claim can sometimes reach back 4 years.
Where: California Labor Commissioner (DLSE) wage claim, or civil court.
Sources: Cal. Lab. Code §§ 1194, 1197; SOL per Code Civ. Proc. § 338(a) and the DLSE wage-claim page.
Unpaid overtime 3 yr
The rule: Non-exempt employees earn 1.5x their regular rate for hours over 8 in a day or 40 in a week (and the first 8 hours on a 7th consecutive workday), and 2x for hours over 12 in a day or over 8 on that 7th day.
Deadline: Generally 3 years, running per payday; a related unfair-competition claim can reach back 4 years.
Where: DLSE wage claim or civil court. Form: DLSE Form 1. Overtime FAQ.
Sources: Cal. Lab. Code §§ 510, 1194.
Missed meal or rest breaks 3 yr
The rule: A 30-minute meal period is required when you work more than 5 hours (a second when you work more than 10), and a net 10-minute paid rest period per 4 hours worked. For each workday a required meal or rest break is not provided, you are owed one extra hour of pay at your regular rate.
Deadline: Generally 3 years (the extra-hour premium is treated as a wage), running per workday of violation. The exact period can vary with how the claim is framed; confirm it.
Where: DLSE wage claim or civil court. Pages: Meal periods · Rest periods.
Sources: Cal. Lab. Code §§ 226.7(c), 512; applicable IWC Wage Order; DLSE FAQs.
Late or missing final paycheck 3 yr · penalty runs daily
The rule: If you are fired, your final wages are due immediately. If you quit, they are due within 72 hours (immediately if you gave 72 hours' notice). If the employer willfully fails to pay on time, you are owed a "waiting-time penalty" of a full day's wages for each day the wages are late, up to 30 days.
Deadline: Generally 3 years, tied to the underlying unpaid wages, running from when final wages were due.
Where: DLSE wage claim or civil court. Page: Paydays and final pay.
Sources: Cal. Lab. Code §§ 201, 202, 203.
Wrong or missing pay stubs as short as 1 yr
The rule: Each pay period your employer must give you an accurate itemized wage statement with nine specific items. A knowing and intentional failure can expose the employer to statutory damages plus costs and attorney's fees.
Deadline: The statutory-damages piece can be as short as 1 year; other portions may allow longer. Because courts are not uniform on this, treat 1 year as your safe assumption and confirm.
Where: DLSE wage claim or civil court. Form: DLSE Form 1.
Sources: Cal. Lab. Code § 226(a), (e). Limitations period is fact- and relief-dependent — confirm with an attorney.
Called a contractor but treated like an employee depends on the claim
The rule: In California you are presumed an employee unless the hiring business proves all three parts of the "ABC test": (A) you are free from its control, (B) your work is outside its usual business, and (C) you independently do this kind of work for others. Many statutory exceptions exist, and a different multifactor test applies where the ABC test cannot.
Deadline: There is no separate "misclassification" clock — the deadline is set by the underlying claim the misclassification enables (unpaid wages/overtime generally 3 years; pay-stub penalties as short as 1 year).
Where: DLSE, civil court, or EDD (for unemployment/payroll-tax status). Page: Independent contractor FAQ.
Sources: Cal. Lab. Code § 2775 (codifying Dynamex/AB 5) and its exceptions.
Retaliation or whistleblowing 1 yr to the Labor Commissioner
The rule: Your employer cannot fire, demote, or punish you for protected activity — such as complaining about unpaid wages, or reporting something you reasonably believe is illegal to a government agency or to someone with authority over you. Penalties can reach up to $10,000 per employee per violation.
Deadline: A complaint to the Labor Commissioner is generally due within 1 year of the retaliation (extendable for good cause). A civil whistleblower lawsuit may allow longer, and you usually do not have to exhaust the administrative step first — but the safe move is to act within a year.
Where: Labor Commissioner (DLSE) Retaliation Complaint unit, or civil court. Page: Retaliation complaints.
Sources: Cal. Lab. Code §§ 98.6, 98.7, 1102.5.
Discrimination or harassment CRD: 3 yr · then 1 yr to sue
The rule: A covered employer cannot discriminate against you in hiring, firing, pay, or terms of employment, or harass you, because of a protected characteristic (race, sex, disability, age 40+, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, and others).
Deadline (two steps): First file an intake with the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) within 3 years of the harm. After CRD issues a right-to-sue notice, file the lawsuit within 1 year of that notice. In employment cases you can request an immediate right-to-sue. A parallel federal EEOC charge is generally due within 300 days.
Where: California Civil Rights Department (CRD), then civil court; federal parallel is the EEOC. Portal: CCRS online intake · Complaint process.
Sources: Cal. Gov. Code §§ 12940, 12960 (3-yr intake, AB 9), 12965 (1-yr to sue); EEOC time-limits page.
Leave or accommodation (pregnancy, disability, family) FEHA track: 3 yr / 1 yr
The rule: If you are disabled by pregnancy or a related condition you may take up to 4 months of pregnancy-disability leave. Separately, an eligible employee of a covered employer (5+ employees; you have worked 12+ months and 1,250+ hours) may take up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave under the California Family Rights Act, with reinstatement to the same or a comparable job. Employers also must reasonably accommodate a disability through an interactive process.
Deadline: Enforced on the FEHA track — CRD intake within 3 years, then suit within 1 year of the right-to-sue notice.
Where: CRD, then civil court. Portal: CCRS intake · CRD employment.
Sources: Cal. Gov. Code §§ 12945, 12945.2, 12940(m)–(n). Exact employer-size coverage is fact-specific — confirm.
Unemployment benefits denied 30 days to appeal
The rule: If you are unemployed through no fault of your own you may claim unemployment benefits from EDD. If EDD denies you, you can appeal to an administrative law judge.
Deadline: 30 days from the mailing of the Notice of Determination to file your appeal (extendable only for good cause, such as a genuine mistake or excusable neglect). This is one of the shortest deadlines in this clinic.
Where: EDD → California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board. Form: DE 1000M (comes with your Notice) or a signed appeal letter. Page: EDD appeals.
Sources: Cal. Unemp. Ins. Code § 1328; EDD appeals page.
Severance agreement to sign deadline set by the offer
The rule: A severance agreement is a contract. It usually asks you to release legal claims in exchange for money, and it often has a signing deadline and sometimes a short revocation window. Once you sign a valid release, you generally give up the claims it covers.
Before you sign: Know what claims you would be giving up and whether the amount reflects them. This is the one area where a short, paid attorney review often pays for itself. Do not let a deadline pressure you into signing something you have not read carefully.
Where: This is a review-and-negotiate matter, not an agency filing. See attorney review below.
General contract principles; specific terms control. Have the actual document reviewed.
Deadlines at a glance
The single most important thing in an employment matter is not missing the deadline. These are the general periods from official sources. They are starting points, not guarantees: accrual dates, the continuing-violation doctrine, tolling, and administrative exhaustion routinely move the real clock.
| If your problem is… | You usually file with… | General deadline | Clock usually starts… |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment denial | EDD → Appeals Board | 30 days | Mailing of the Notice of Determination |
| Retaliation / whistleblower (administrative) | Labor Commissioner | 1 year | The retaliatory act |
| Wrong / missing pay stubs | DLSE or court | as short as 1 year | Each non-compliant pay stub |
| Discrimination / harassment (CRD intake) | Civil Rights Department | 3 years | The unlawful act |
| Discrimination lawsuit after right-to-sue | Civil court | 1 year | Date of the right-to-sue notice |
| Unpaid wages / overtime / meal-rest | DLSE or court | 3 years | Each unpaid payday / workday |
| Late final pay (waiting-time penalty) | DLSE or court | 3 years | When final wages were due |
| Oral promise to pay above minimum | DLSE or court | 2 years | Breach of the promise |
| Written employment contract | Civil court | 4 years | Breach of the contract |
| Federal discrimination charge (EEOC) | EEOC | 300 days | The discriminatory act |
| Union / concerted-activity retaliation | NLRB | 6 months | The unfair labor practice |
Do not compute your own deadline from this table alone. The safe assumption is the earliest date that could apply. If a deadline might be close, get it confirmed immediately — a missed deadline usually ends the claim no matter how strong it was.
Which agency handles what
Choosing the right forum affects both your deadline and your remedy. This is the honest routing map.
| Forum | Handles | Key deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Labor Commissioner / DLSE | Unpaid wages, minimum wage, overtime, meal/rest premiums, final-pay and waiting-time penalties, pay-stub violations, Labor Code retaliation | Wages 3 yr; retaliation 1 yr |
| Civil Rights Department (CRD) | Discrimination, harassment, failure to accommodate, pregnancy/family leave | Intake 3 yr; sue 1 yr after right-to-sue |
| EEOC (federal) | Federal discrimination (Title VII, ADA, ADEA) — parallel to CRD | 300 days |
| EDD | Unemployment eligibility and benefit determinations; worker status for payroll tax | Appeal 30 days |
| NLRB (federal) | Unfair labor practices; protected group activity (union and non-union) | 6 months |
| Civil court | Contract wage claims, FEHA lawsuits after right-to-sue, unfair-competition restitution | Per the underlying claim |
Wage disputes go to the Labor Commissioner or court. Discrimination and harassment go to the CRD (and/or the EEOC); a right-to-sue from the CRD is required before a state discrimination lawsuit. Benefit denials go to EDD. Union or group-activity retaliation goes to the NLRB.
Evidence to preserve now
Employment cases are won with documents, not arguments. Save these before you lose access to a work account. Keep your own copies somewhere personal.
- Pay stubs and any records of hours worked
- Your offer letter, contract, or handbook
- Texts, emails, and chat messages about pay, schedule, or the problem
- Schedules, timecards, or clock-in records
- Any write-ups, warnings, or performance reviews
- Your termination notice or final-pay documents
- Names of people who saw what happened (keep this private, do not post it)
- A dated written timeline of events while it is fresh
- Bank records showing what you were actually paid and when
- Any severance or release document you were given
Preserve, do not destroy or alter anything, and do not take documents you are not entitled to. If you are still employed and might lose access, make personal copies of things you already have a right to (like your own pay stubs) now.
How the Analyst answers
Every substantive answer follows the same predictable shape, so you know what you are getting and what it will not do.
- A preliminary read of what may be going on
- The facts that would change the answer, and which are still missing
- The rights that may be involved
- The deadlines that may apply, with the caveat that only case-specific review confirms a date
- The evidence to preserve
- Practical next steps, usually the next three
- The right form, agency, or procedure
- When the matter genuinely needs a human lawyer
- The official sources behind the answer
- The date the underlying law was last reviewed
The Analyst grounds legal statements in official primary sources and does not guess a filing deadline for you. When it cannot support something, it says so rather than inventing it. It is attorney-supervised information, not legal advice, and using it does not make me your lawyer.
Official forms and agencies
Wages and final pay
Discrimination and harassment
Unemployment
California self-help
When the matter is worth a lawyer
The free clinic above resolves a lot of problems on its own. Some situations, though, are worth a short paid review before you act. This is separate from the free clinic, with its own intake and a conflict check, and it never gates the free information.
A written attorney consultation
Send your question, a short summary, and key documents; get a written attorney response identifying the main issues, risks, leverage, and practical next steps. Good for "is this worth pursuing, and how."
A severance or agreement review
Have the actual document read before you sign away claims. This is where a small review most often pays for itself, especially with a signing deadline.
Not sure if you need a lawyer?
Ask the Analyst above first. It will tell you honestly when a matter is something you can handle yourself and when attorney judgment actually matters. Every service is a published flat fee, so you know the cost before you write to me.
Sources and review
This clinic is grounded in official primary sources. Law reviewed as of July 22, 2026.
Primary sources: California Labor Code (§§ 201–203, 226, 226.7, 510, 512, 98.6, 98.7, 1102.5, 1194, 1197, 2775) and Government Code (§§ 12940, 12945, 12945.2, 12960, 12965) via leginfo.legislature.ca.gov; California Code of Civil Procedure §§ 337–340; California Unemployment Insurance Code § 1328; the Department of Industrial Relations / DLSE; the California Civil Rights Department; the Employment Development Department; the U.S. EEOC; and the NLRB.
Some deadline characterizations depend on how a claim is framed and on court decisions that can evolve. Those are presented conservatively and flagged for case-specific confirmation. If you spot something that looks out of date, tell me at owner@terms.law and I will review it.