Why people use this
It costs nothing to find out where you stand, nothing goes to your employer, and what you send goes to a real employment lawyer licensed in California — not a database, not a lead list. You do not need to know whether what happened was against the law; that is what the lawyer works out once they have read your file.
What this is about
Small amounts of unrecorded time add up, and they are among the hardest things to show from memory alone — which is why documents matter here more than almost anywhere else.
Things people describe
- You set up or close down before or after your logged hours.
- You answer messages about work at home.
- You are told to clock out and finish up.
If any of this sounds like your situation, that does not tell you whether anything went wrong — it tells you it may be worth having someone look.
What helps
- Time records and payslips.
- Message threads with timestamps.
- Door, till or system logs, if you can get them.
We ask for documents because they show what happened better than memory does. If you do not have something, say so; a gap is a normal part of a case and not a reason to stop.
In California
Time an employer knows about and permits generally counts as hours worked. Whether that describes a particular pattern is a question about the evidence.
Claims about work usually have time limits, and they can be shorter than people expect. We cannot tell you what your own time limit is — that depends on your situation. If this matters to you, it is worth finding out sooner rather than later.
What happens if you start
The pattern you describe and the records you have go to a firm together.
About us
Worker Rights Line is not a law firm and cannot give you legal advice. We help you put your situation and your documents together, and pass them to an employment law firm in California who decides whether they can act for you.
Reviewed by Jelmer de Boer on 2026-08-19.
Based on: IWC wage orders, 'hours worked'. Check at review.