Hi everyone i just wanted to get some advice as what to do next in this situation. I am in California, USA. My job at a market does yearly reviews and last year I was given a raise with the promise of “getting put on a pto plan” directly from the mouth of the owners. This happened enee late last year.
At the start of this year, i was told one of my family members passed away. I took a couple weeks off but returned to work. No mention of pto. My mental state was not good during this time at all. I had difficulty sleeping and thinking of anything else. I was still able to perform well at work and interact with customers but I did not feel like myself and still dont.
Fast forward to may/june 2023 and a coworker asks me if I have received pto yet and i say no. Apparently he is in a similar situation about pto but i have not had this conversation with him since. At this point I feel like my managers and the owners of the company are taking advantage of my and other coworkers lack of negotiating experience. I feel in my case too that the fact I have not been in a great mental state has been taken advantage of.
I have also noticed other labor violations the company is guilty of. I am a shift supervisor/lead and we accept tips at this market bc of all the different things we do. I only learned this year that it is illegal for managers to take tips in California. All managers at my job receive at least $100 in tips every week for the last 3 years.
I will have to go to the bank to deposit cash and change bills/coins but I am not being compensated for my mileage for this or other tasks. I am using a personal vehicle while on the clock. This is also illegal under california law.
Should i get a lawyer or go to the NLRB/ dept of labor? Thank you. I will try to answer questions as quick as i can.