California Final Pay: Discharge, Resignation, Commissions, and Waiting-Time Records

Review the primary official source.

California final-pay timing depends on how employment ended, the notice given, and the nature of the compensation. A useful analysis separates the last day worked, the legal payment deadline, the amounts then ascertainable, later conditions on commissions, and the date payment was actually tendered.

Classify the separation accurately

DLSE states that earned wages are generally due immediately when an employee is discharged. An employee who resigns with at least 72 hours’ notice is generally due final wages at quitting; without that notice, payment is generally due within 72 hours. Preserve the resignation, termination communication, schedule, and last-worked record.

Reconcile every component of final pay

Compare regular hours, overtime, meal or rest premiums, bonuses, accrued vacation, lawful deductions, expense items, and commissions with the governing plan and payroll records. DLSE explains that earned commissions cannot be postponed until the employer’s customary later calculation date, while a commission subject to an unmet legal condition may become due when that condition occurs.

Document delivery or tender

Record where and how payment was made, any authorized direct-deposit continuation, mailing request, check availability, and communications to the former employee. The date of tender can stop further waiting-time accrual even if the employee delays pickup. A stale or dishonored check raises a different factual record from a check never offered.

Analyze waiting time separately

Labor Code section 203 addresses a willful failure to pay wages due, with a potential continuation of the daily wage for up to 30 days. The existence and amount of unpaid wages, good-faith dispute, daily rate, and tender date each matter. Prepare a day-by-day worksheet rather than multiplying the last hourly rate without examining the regular work schedule.