KCRW reviewed over 2300 wage claims filed by LA area restaurant workers between January 2013 through May 2016 in the Los Angeles and Long Beach offices of the Labor Commissioner. Data from the Van Nuys office was not available.
We then narrowed our focus to 448 decisions made by Labor Commissioner hearing officers, ordering restaurant owners to reimburse workers for back or unpaid wages, fees and interest. The 448 decisions were cross referenced with records at the Los Angeles Superior Court, verifying how many became clerk’s judgments. We removed six cases in which the employer won on appeal. We then analyzed the 441 judgments and decisions ordering restaurants to pay various amounts to their employees.
KCRW found that $6.7 million was awarded to the employees, but 75 percent hadn’t received any payment.
Some workers settled their judgments privately with an employer. They are under no obligation to notify the Labor Commissioner or the court of any settlement, which can involve a confidential sum. For this reason, the amount of money collected may be higher.
The top judgments
According to the data, the following 20 restaurants had the highest judgments and decisions against them.
Some of these restaurants have closed, others appear to be different restaurants with some similar sounding names. For example, Chef Marilyn’s Soul Food Express is now Chef Marilyn’s Southern Cuisine.
KCRW has not determined if ownership has changed for any of these establishments.
| Top 20 restaurants with highest judgments against them | |
| Name | Amount |
| China Express (Commerce, CA 90022) | $280,570 |
| Nem Noung Ninh Restaurant (Rosemead, CA 91770) | $231,272 |
| China Wok (Wilshire Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90025) | $229,839 |
| Los Angeles Brewing Company (Los Angeles, CA 90014) | $222,207 |
| Mandarin Cuisine (Los Angeles, CA. 90066) | $208,401 |
| Panadería Latina (Los Angeles, CA 90006) | $192,432 |
| El Korita Jr. Restaurant (Los Angeles, CA 90001) | $183,154 |
| Art’s Wings & Things (Inglewood, CA 90303) | $167,173 |
| New Rasbhog (Artesia, CA 90701) | $139,383 |
| Seoul Tofu ( Monterey Park 91754) | $129,933 |
| Cemitas Tepeaca (Los Angeles, CA 90023) | $119,189 |
| Antojitos Denise’s (Los Angeles, CA 9002) | $116,746 |
| Orchid Thai Cuisine (Arcadia, CA 91007) | $113,976 |
| Chef Marilyn’s 99 Cents Soul Food Express (Los Angeles, CA 90016) | $113,446 |
| Agra Indian Kitchen (Venice, CA 90291) | $112,332 |
| Shaanxi Gourmet (Rosemead, CA 91770) | $94,170 |
| Tila’s Kitchen (Los Angeles, CA 90023) | $93,292 |
| Tacos Don Chente (Norwalk) | $87,472 |
| Geo’s Organic Coffee (Culver City, 90230) | $85,198 |
| Sinbala Restaurant (Arcadia, CA 91007) | $79,849 |
Data analysis by Miguel Contreras