The civil complaint against Burrito King is at least the third Janz\u2019s office has filed against a local employer accused of labor code violations since the city launched its program in August 2024.<\/p>\n
Fresno\u2019s City Council first authorized Janz to pursue civil wage theft cases in February 2024. The decision followed a 2023 state law that authorized local public attorneys<\/a> to pursue civil and criminal wage theft actions within their jurisdictions, which would help ease the caseload<\/a> of the California Labor Commissioner\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n Since then, Janz has sued the operator of a north Fresno Holiday Inn<\/a> and also a former Mexican seafood restaurant<\/a>, though both those cases remain in litigation. Janz also publicly announced his office would investigate whether Valley Children\u2019s Hospital committed wage theft at its Fresno facilties, though he told The Bee a few months ago that probe was \u201con pause.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n The council in December also allowed Janz to begin criminal prosecutions<\/a> of employers, and added staff to the wage protection program. He told The Bee in a January interview that his office would be increasingly filing wage theft complaints this year.<\/p>\n Patterson, the Biggie Burrito owner, registered the restaurant as a business in Fresno County in February 2023, according to Janz\u2019s complaint. He hired Briseno as manager, but their plan was that Briseno would eventually take over as owner, the complaint alleges.<\/p>\n Though Janz\u2019s complaint calls both of them \u201cemployers,\u201d it alleges Briseno was responsible for hiring, payroll and controlled the restaurant\u2019s cashflow overall.<\/p>\n Janz alleges in the complaint that Briseno \u201cordered employees to sign agreements\u201d that designated the workers as independent contractors instead of employees. But Briseno and Patterson still maintained \u201csubstantial control\u201d over the workers, the complaint alleges.<\/p>\n The defendants did not pay the workers on a regular schedule, keep payroll records or consistently allow lunch breaks, the complaint alleges.<\/p>\n \u201cNo worker was fully compensated for their wages,\u201d Janz alleges in the complaint. \u201cIn some cases, workers were charged for and had sums taken from their pay to reimburse for a company trip without authorization.\u201d<\/p>\n Patterson shut down the restaurant\u2019s business license in June 2024.<\/p>\n The city has requested a jury trial. It is seeking to recover the workers\u2019 unpaid wages and also wants the court to assess against the defendants the \u201cmaximum amount of penalties\u201d authorized by the state\u2019s Labor Code, the complaint says.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Fresno Bee<\/p>\n Fresno City Attorney Andrew Janz, left, and District 4 City Councilmember Tyler Maxwell, right, announced the city\u2019s first wage theft prosecution at City Hall on Monday, May 12, 2025. ERIK GALICIA egalicia@fresnobee.com Former Fresno burrito shop accusations in wage theft lawsuit<\/p>\n
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