In this guide11 sections
Labor Code §2810.3 says a business that gets workers from a staffing agency or other labor contractor to do its usual work shares legal responsibility with that contractor for paying those workers’ wages and for any failure to carry valid workers’ compensation coverage. If the agency doesn’t pay you, the company where you actually worked can be on the hook too, as long as the business and the work meet the statute’s tests.
This page walks through the statute: who counts as a client employer and a labor contractor, what liability is shared, the 30-day notice rule, the exceptions and the deadlines. For practical help with pay, sick leave and assignments as a temp worker, see our guide to temp agency worker rights. If you were hurt on assignment, see workers’ comp for temp and staffing agency workers.
- Labor Code §2810.3 makes a client employer share liability with a staffing agency or labor contractor for supplied workers’ wages.
- The client also shares liability if the contractor failed to carry valid workers’ comp coverage, and it can’t shift its safety duties to the contractor.
- Businesses with fewer than 25 workers or five or fewer supplied workers at a time, and public entities, are not client employers.
- The work must be in the client’s usual course of business, on its premises or worksite.
- You must give the client employer 30 days’ notice before suing it, and any waiver of the section is void.
What Labor Code 2810.3 says, in plain English
- A “client employer” that uses workers from a “labor contractor” for its usual course of business shares all civil legal responsibility and civil liability for those workers’ wages.
- It also shares liability if the contractor fails to secure valid workers’ compensation coverage.
- It cannot shift its workplace safety duties under the Labor Code to the contractor.
- Before suing the client employer, you or your representative must notify it of the violations at least 30 days ahead.
- Neither the client nor the contractor may retaliate against you for giving notice or filing a claim, and you cannot waive these rights.
Who §2810.3 covers
Subdivision (a) sets up three definitions that decide whether the statute applies.
| Term | Who it includes | Who it leaves out |
|---|---|---|
| Client employer | A business entity, of any form, that obtains or is provided workers to perform labor within its usual course of business from a labor contractor | Businesses with fewer than 25 workers (counting direct hires and contractor-supplied workers); businesses with “five or fewer workers supplied by a labor contractor” at any given time; the state and its political subdivisions |
| Labor contractor | An individual or entity that supplies a client employer with workers for its usual course of business, with or without a contract | Bona fide nonprofit community-based organizations serving workers; bona fide labor organizations, apprenticeship programs or hiring halls under a collective bargaining agreement; motion picture payroll services companies; a party to an employee leasing arrangement that contractually makes the client employer assume all civil liability |
| Worker | People supplied by the labor contractor | Employees exempt from overtime as executive, administrative or professional employees under the wage orders |
Usual course of business means “the regular and customary work of a business, performed within or upon the premises or worksite of the client employer.” A warehouse that uses agency pickers on its own floor fits. A company that sends work off-site, or uses a contractor for something outside its regular work, may not.
Wages has the meaning in Labor Code §200 and also includes sums owed to an employee or the state because wages were not paid, as provided by law.
The rules, subdivision by subdivision
| Subdivision | What it says (paraphrased) |
|---|---|
| (b) | The client employer shares with the labor contractor all civil legal responsibility and civil liability for supplied workers for the payment of wages and the failure to secure valid workers’ compensation coverage under §3700. |
| (c) | The client employer cannot shift to the contractor its duties and liabilities under the workplace safety laws (Division 5, starting at §6300). |
| (d) | At least 30 days before filing a civil action against a client employer for violations covered by (b), the worker or the worker’s representative must notify the client employer of the violations. |
| (e) | Neither the client employer nor the contractor may take adverse action against a worker for giving notice of violations or filing a claim or civil action. |
| (f) | Subdivisions (b) and (c) add to, and do not replace, other theories of liability. |
| (g)–(h) | The client and the contractor can use their contract to enforce lawful remedies against each other for liability caused by the other’s acts. |
| (i) | On request, the client employer or contractor must give state enforcement agencies information needed to verify compliance. |
| (j)–(l) | The Labor Commissioner, Cal/OSHA and the EDD may adopt regulations within their areas. |
| (m) | Any waiver of the section is “void and unenforceable” as against public policy. |
The company where you did the work may share liability for your wages under §2810.3. We can check whether it meets the size and usual-course tests.
Exceptions
- Small clients and government. Fewer than 25 workers, five or fewer supplied workers at a time, or a public entity: no §2810.3 liability.
- Homeowners and home-based businesses are not individually liable for labor received at the home (subdivision (n)).
- Independent contractors. Using an independent contractor that is not a labor contractor does not create liability, and the section does not change who counts as an independent contractor (subdivision (o)). If you were labeled a contractor, see Labor Code §2775 and the ABC test.
- Industry carve-outs in subdivision (p): shippers that use a third-party motor carrier; motor carriers and household movers that subcontract to other carriers or movers using their own employees and vehicles; cable operators, satellite TV providers and telephone companies whose contractors’ names are visible on employee uniforms and vehicles; and motor clubs whose contractors’ names are visible on the contractors’ vehicles.
- Exempt workers. Executive, administrative and professional employees exempt from overtime are not “workers” under the section.
Penalties and remedies
Section 2810.3 does not set its own penalty. It makes the client employer answer, alongside the contractor, for what the contractor owes: unpaid minimum wage and overtime, and other sums owed because wages were not paid, as provided by law. Depending on the facts, sums owed because wages were not paid may include amounts such as waiting time penalties. If the contractor had no valid workers’ comp policy, the client shares that liability too; see Labor Code §3700 and §3706 on uninsured employers. Other statutes reach client employers as well: Labor Code §1102.5 defines “employer” to include client employers under §2810.3.
Deadlines
| What | Time limit | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Notice to the client employer before a lawsuit | At least 30 days before filing | Lab. Code §2810.3(d) |
| Lawsuit for unpaid wages (a liability created by statute) | Generally 3 years | Code Civ. Proc. §338(a) |
| Retaliation complaint with the Labor Commissioner | 1 year after the retaliation (can be extended for good cause) | Lab. Code §98.7(a) |
The 30-day notice in subdivision (d) is written for a “civil action.” For a Labor Commissioner wage claim, see our explainer on Labor Code §98.
Related sections
| Section | How it connects |
|---|---|
| Lab. Code §200 | Defines “wages” for §2810.3 |
| Lab. Code §3700 | Duty to carry workers’ comp coverage, which the client shares under (b) |
| Lab. Code §1102.5(i) | Treats client employers as employers for whistleblower retaliation |
| Lab. Code §2100 | Counts staffing agency workers toward warehouse quota coverage; see Labor Code §§2100–2112 |
| Lab. Code §558.1 | Personal liability of owners, officers and managers for some wage violations; see Labor Code §558.1 |
How it plays out
💡 Example: Luis, a hypothetical forklift operator, is placed by a staffing agency at a manufacturer’s plant. The manufacturer has 120 workers, 30 of them from the agency. Luis works 10 overtime hours a week for 4 weeks at a $22 regular rate, and the agency never pays him anything for those overtime hours: 40 hours × $22 × 1.5 = $1,320. Moving materials inside the plant is part of the manufacturer’s usual course of business, so under §2810.3(b) it shares liability for that $1,320 with the agency. If Luis mails the required notice to the manufacturer on June 1, the earliest he can file suit against it is July 1, 30 days later.
What to do
Write down the name and address of both the agency and the company where you worked, keep your pay stubs and schedules, and note who supervised you day to day. If wages are missing, an employment lawyer can check whether the client employer meets the size and usual-course tests, send the 30-day notice and decide whether to go to court or the Labor Commissioner.
Frequently asked questions
Does §2810.3 make the company where I worked my employer?
It makes that company share civil liability for your wages and for missing workers’ comp coverage. Subdivision (f) says this is in addition to other theories, so the company may also be your joint employer under other law, but §2810.3 applies either way when its tests are met.
Do I have to warn the client employer before suing?
Yes. You or your representative must notify the client employer of the violations at least 30 days before filing a civil action against it for wage or workers’ comp coverage violations.
Can a staffing agreement make me give up these rights?
No. Subdivision (m) says any waiver of §2810.3 is void and unenforceable.
What if the business has only a few temp workers?
A business with five or fewer workers supplied by a labor contractor at any given time, or fewer than 25 workers in total, is not a client employer under the section.
Does §2810.3 apply to independent contractors?
Not to genuine independent contractors that are not labor contractors. If you were called a contractor but really work as an employee, the ABC test may change that.
Sources
- Labor Code §2810.3 (California.Public.Law mirror)
- Labor Code §98.7 (California.Public.Law mirror)
- Code of Civil Procedure §338 (California.Public.Law mirror)
- Labor Code §2100 (California.Public.Law mirror)
Workers only. Never employers.
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This article provides general information about California law and is not legal advice for any specific situation. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
