CSLB Workers' Compensation and Employment Law 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: California's prevailing wage law applies to public works projects and is administered by:
- CSLB
- DIR (Department of Industrial Relations) (Correct answer)
- Employment Development Department
- California Labor Commissioner
Correct answer: DIR (Department of Industrial Relations)
The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) administers the prevailing wage law and sets the required wage rates for each craft on public works projects.
Question 2: A certified payroll report on California public works projects must be submitted:
- Monthly to the awarding authority
- Weekly to the Labor Commissioner
- Weekly and kept on file — submitted to the DIR upon request or as required (Correct answer)
- Daily to the project inspector
Correct answer: Weekly and kept on file — submitted to the DIR upon request or as required
California requires contractors on public works to complete certified payroll records weekly; these are submitted to the awarding body and the DIR's eCPR system.
Question 3: Under California law, the penalty for willfully misclassifying an employee as an independent contractor is:
- A written warning for first offense
- $5,000 to $15,000 per violation, plus $25,000 for patterns of violations (Correct answer)
- $500 per day until corrected
- Automatic license suspension
Correct answer: $5,000 to $15,000 per violation, plus $25,000 for patterns of violations
California Labor Code §226.8 imposes civil penalties of $5,000–$15,000 per violation for willful misclassification, rising to $25,000 per violation for patterns of violations.
Question 4: California's meal period law requires that construction workers receive an uninterrupted meal period of at least 30 minutes after no more than how many hours of work?
- 4 hours
- 5 hours (Correct answer)
- 6 hours
- 8 hours
Correct answer: 5 hours
California Labor Code §512 requires employers to provide a 30-minute uninterrupted meal period before the employee has worked more than 5 hours in a shift.
Question 5: Under California overtime law, non-exempt construction workers are entitled to overtime pay at 1.5x their regular rate for all hours worked over:
- 8 hours in a day OR 40 hours in a week (Correct answer)
- 10 hours in a day or 40 hours in a week
- 40 hours in a week only
- 50 hours in a week
Correct answer: 8 hours in a day OR 40 hours in a week
California requires overtime pay at 1.5x for all hours worked over 8 in a day or over 40 in a week, and double time for hours over 12 in a day.
Question 6: A general contractor on a California project is jointly liable for their subcontractors' unpaid wages under which law?
- California Wage Theft Prevention Act
- SB 54 — Joint Liability for Wage Theft
- AB 1701 — Contractor Liability for Subcontractor Wages (Correct answer)
- California Prevailing Wage Act
Correct answer: AB 1701 — Contractor Liability for Subcontractor Wages
AB 1701 (Labor Code §218.7) holds direct contractors jointly and severally liable for their subcontractors' wage theft violations, incentivizing GCs to vet and monitor subs.
CSLB Workers' Compensation and Employment Law 2
California's prevailing wage law applies to public works projects and is administered by: