California Attorney General Rob Bonta today announced a $10 million judgment and permanent injunction granted by the Los Angeles County Superior Court against Care Specialist HCS Inc., formerly doing business as TLC Home Care Services, and its former and current owner-operators, over the company and its operators’ business practice of misclassifying in-home care workers as independent contractors instead of employees in direct violation of California’s labor laws and Unfair Competition Law. The judgment, which was entered by the court after granting the Attorney General’s summary adjudication motion, includes over $10 million in restitution and civil penalties and permanent injunctive relief barring Care Specialist HCS Inc., and its former and current owner-operators from improperly classifying employees as independent contractors in the future.

“Today’s judgment brings long-overdue justice to hundreds of in-home care workers who were denied fair wages, benefits, and basic labor protections and who were also subjected to illegal no-poach agreements which restricted their mobility in the labor market,” said Attorney General Bonta. “This is a clear message to employers in California: Misclassification is wage theft. If you cheat workers by misclassifying them, you will be held accountable.”