Fresno, CA -- Last Friday, the California Labor Commissioner's hearing officer affirmed

$665,119 in citations against Bedford Care Group, Inc. and its owner Stephanie Costa for wage and hour violations in its assisted care home facilities.  The affirmed citations include unpaid minimum wage and overtime, owed to eleven former employees, plus civil penalties.  The Asian Law Caucus (ALC) represents the eleven workers.  Filipino Advocates for Justice (FAJ) also supported the workers.  
 

"We are happy that the decision recognizes many of the long and unpaid hours that we worked," said former Bedford worker, Juliet Delos Reyes. "As caregivers, we worked hard to properly care for people's loved ones in the home.  Many were old or hospice patients in the last journey of their life.  We were their eyes, hands, and legs.  The law should not only protect the patients we cared for, but also the people caring for them."

ALC filed the workers' claims with the state Labor Commissioner's office last year.  Bedford and Costa administratively appealed the resulting citations, which led to a three week administrative trial earlier this year.  The workers and community supporters have been active in the months leading up to and following the trial, organizing against rampant wage theft in the caregiving industry and the abuses challenged in the Bedford case in particular.
 

"Caregivers are amongst the most abused workers we see.  Wage theft in the caregiving industry is rampant" said ALC attorney Gina Szeto. "Many caregivers, like these former Bedford workers, work on-call twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week without overtime payandwithout meal and rest breaks.  Any of us who have cared for a sick or elderly loved one know how exhausting but important caregiving is.  Caregivers deserve to be treated with respect and properly paid for the work they do.
 

"It took a lot of courage for them to step forward and have their voices heard," said FAJ organizer Fiona Cruz, "We hope their example will encourage other caregivers to do the same."
 

The original citations included additional overtime pay and break violation premiums that were not affirmed by the hearing officer.  The workers are still considering what if any additional legal steps they may want to take to further pursue those amounts.