unpaid wages claim...how long will it take? California

[ttzterror]

hi! i'm new here but i'm looking for an answer from someone who's had experience. i recently quit my job for non payment of wages. my co workers and myself have actually been getting the runaround for almost a year, but eventually got paid. i should've left sooner but couldn't find another job, just like my co workers. when i finally quit, i was owed 2 months of pay. it has been 2 months since then and i've gotten paid only a small fraction of what i'm owed. i threatened him with a unpaid wage claim, and after a few days of message tag, i filed. it's been a month and i've heard nothing from the labor board. i call every few days, and on those days i call at least five times a day, but never get a chance to speak to anybody. my ex-boss is threatening to bankrupt. from what i understand, he tried chapter 8, then switched to chapter 11, and i think his case was thrown out because there was obvious credit card fraud. all his assets have been repossessed, he got a divorce, and his ex-wife took the rest. there is a line of people who have a judgement filed against him. if he closes the business and i file a judgement, does labor claims take priority since payroll and taxes are the 2 things you can not bankrupt on?

[mcarson87]

I filed a claim with the Oakland office and the conference date is approximately 4 months from the date I submitted the claim. It took 2 months to receive a notice with the conference date. I don't know how things are at the office you filed but it could quite possibly take a couple months to receive anything.

Unfortunately, I doubt the DLSE will give your claim preference because of your employer's upcoming bankruptcy, though I cannot say for certain. You may want to consider an attorney. The DLSE cannot go after an individual, an attorney (or more specifically a court action) can.

[ttzterror]

I believe he can no longer bankrupt because of creditcard fraud but I know he has had several bank accounts under his fathers name. He's getting kicked off the current business property and I know he has money saved for this move. He hasn' t paid rent for that property because apparently he was untouchable due to his pending bankrupt case. Now that it has been thrown out, I might file a judgement. My question is , does unpaid wages take priority or is it first come first serve with whoever else put a lien on him?

[ledman5555]

good question man. im enjoying it. keep us updated on the news... i have filed my claim about a month ago, still waiting for a converance call...i also filed with my local oakland, ca office.