Recovery of wages: liquidated damages.

Existing law authorizes an employee to bring a civil lawsuit against his or her employer for the unpaid balance of wages or compensation owed to that employee. Existing law permits an employee to recover liquidated damages equal to the unpaid wages plus interest in a court action alleging payment of less than the state minimum wage. This bill would provide that a suit for liquidated damages may be filed at any time before the expiration of the statute of limitations for bringing the underlying action alleging payment of less than the state minimum wage.