Employer Paid below Minimum wage for over 1 year - what are my options?

Hi LegalAdvice,

I've been notified by my employer that I was paid below the state minimum wage in California. I am salaried, and didn't realize there was a salary minimum, and so I didn't figure it out myself before now. I am owed over $27k for underpayments from June 2021 through January 2023. They are paying me via a lump sum payment with my next paycheck.

My questions are:

- Looking at my paystub that includes this lump sum, it is taxed at over 50%. Is this normal?

- They have not included any of the penalties or interest that (based on my research) they are required to pay for paying below minimum wage. Is this something they should pay out automatically or do I have to get in contact with a lawyer to initiate these payments?

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Pretty clueless, any help or advice I can get would be so helpful.

Thank you!