Glendale is a separate city between Burbank and the Los Angeles neighborhoods of the east Valley. A Glendale employment lawyer should not apply the Los Angeles minimum wage to a Glendale store or hospital unless a Glendale ordinance actually says so.
Most private employers in Glendale follow the California minimum wage, $16.90 an hour as of January 1, 2026. Glendale does have a hotel-worker law. For hotels with 60 or more rooms, the city requires a hotel minimum wage that tracks the Los Angeles hotel rate. The city’s published rate is $25.00 an hour as of July 1, 2026, rising again in 2027 and 2028. That rate is for covered hotel work. It is not the wage for every job in Glendale.
Retail, hotels, and healthcare
Glendale’s workforce is concentrated in retail at the Galleria and the Americana at Brand, in hotels, and in healthcare, including Adventist Health Glendale. The claims follow those industries:
- Retail schedules and off-the-clock closing. Staying to count a register, fold clothes, or wait for a manager after you have clocked out is paid time. Missed rest breaks on a long Saturday shift are premium pay.
- Hotel housekeepers and banquet staff. Check both the California wage orders and Glendale’s hotel ordinance if the property has 60 or more rooms. Room quotas that make rest breaks impossible are a wage claim, not only a staffing complaint.
- Healthcare staffing. Missed meal periods during a shift, unpaid on-call time when you cannot use the time freely, and retaliation for reporting short staffing or a safety problem.
- National-origin harassment. Glendale’s workforce is diverse. Slurs, exclusion from shifts, or English-only rules that are not justified by business necessity can support a FEHA harassment or discrimination claim.
Where to file
Wage claims for Glendale employees are commonly filed with the Labor Commissioner’s Van Nuys office at 6150 Van Nuys Blvd., Room 206. Court cases are filed in Los Angeles Superior Court. A Glendale employer is still a California employer: overtime after eight hours in a day, itemized wage statements, and waiting-time penalties of up to 30 days of pay if the final paycheck is late all apply.
If you also work shifts inside the City of Los Angeles, those hours can be owed at the higher Los Angeles rate. Keep the schedule that shows which city each shift was in.
San Fernando Valley employment lawyers
These guides cover the Valley cities and neighborhoods where Jonny Law represents employees. Each page is about that place, not a copy of the others.
- Employment Lawyer in Van Nuys
- Employment Lawyer in Burbank
- Employment Lawyer in Encino
- Employment Lawyer in Sherman Oaks
- Employment Lawyer in Woodland Hills
- Employment Lawyer in Studio City
Practice guides: California labor and employment, wage and hour, wrongful termination, workplace harassment, and discrimination.
Talk with Jonny Law
If you work in Glendale and you were not paid, you were fired after a complaint, or you are being harassed, contact Jonny Law at 800-566-4868. Consultations are confidential. This page is general information about California and local employment law. It is not legal advice for a specific case, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
