Abramson Labor Group represents Anaheim employees in unpaid wages, wrongful termination, discrimination, and retaliation, on contingency, so you pay nothing unless we win. Anaheim has a wage law most workers never hear about: Measure L, the city’s living wage for hospitality employers tied to city subsidies in the resort area. In 2025, an Orange County judge approved a $233 million settlement for about 51,000 Disneyland workers who said their pay fell short of what Measure L required. The Orange County Superior Court hears Anaheim’s employment lawsuits at the Central Justice Center in Santa Ana.

Why Anaheim Employees Choose Abramson Labor Group

  • We take cases for workers, not companies. Every strategy we build serves the employee.
  • More than 1,900 Google reviewers give us an average of 4.5 stars (as of September 2026).
  • Our case results include $1.7 million in a wrongful termination case and $1.5 million in a sexual harassment case.
  • Founding partner Zev Abramson holds recognitions that include Top 100 Jury Verdicts of California (2020) and Top 100 U.S. Labor and Employment (2024).
  • Spanish-speaking clients can work with us from intake to resolution, and we also assess cases in Armenian.
  • We check resort-area jobs against Measure L, not just state law, because that is where the largest pay gaps hide.

Employment Law in Anaheim: What Local Workers Should Know

Theme parks, resort hotels, restaurants, and the convention trade drive Anaheim’s job market. Here is how the city’s pay rules work.

Measure L sets a higher wage in the resort area

Anaheim voters passed Measure L, the Living Wage Ordinance, in 2018. It requires hospitality employers in the Anaheim Resort and Disneyland Resort areas that benefit from city subsidies to pay a higher minimum wage. The rate started at $15 an hour in 2019 and reached $20.42 an hour by 2025, well above the state minimum, and it adjusts each year for inflation (Top Class Actions, reporting on the Disneyland settlement). Covered employers also owe workers the service-charge amounts the ordinance requires.

The Disneyland case shows how coverage works

Disney argued that Measure L did not apply to it. In 2023, a California appeals court disagreed, holding that agreements letting Disney receive a tax rebate from the city brought it under the ordinance. The case, Grace v. Walt Disney Co., ended with a $233 million settlement that an Orange County judge approved in September 2025 for roughly 51,000 current and former theme park and hotel workers, who recovered 100% of their lost pay plus 10% interest (Top Class Actions). The lesson: coverage turns on an employer’s financial ties to the city, which workers rarely see.

Tips belong to the staff

Whether or not Measure L covers your job, state law makes every tip the sole property of the employee who earned it. Your employer cannot keep any part of it or count it toward your minimum wage (Labor Code section 351).

Outside the resort area, the state wage applies

Anaheim has no citywide minimum wage for jobs outside Measure L’s reach (UC Berkeley Labor Center inventory), so the California rate of $16.90 per hour applies as of January 1, 2026 (California Department of Industrial Relations). Overtime, meal and rest breaks, and final-paycheck rules apply to every non-exempt worker in the city.

Questions about your job or paycheck? Get a free, confidential case review.

What to Look For in an Anaheim Employment Lawyer

  • Loyalty to employees. Ask whether the firm ever represents employers. If it does, its incentives differ from yours.
  • Knowledge of Measure L. Whether the ordinance covers your employer depends on its subsidy arrangements with the city. Your lawyer should know how to find out.
  • A track record in your claim type. Wage underpayment, service-charge theft, and retaliation take different evidence. Ask about results in yours.
  • No upfront cost. Under a contingency fee, the firm earns a fee only if you recover money.

Which Court Hears Anaheim Employment Cases

Anaheim is in Orange County. The Superior Court of California, County of Orange, hears unlimited civil cases at the Central Justice Center, 700 Civic Center Drive West, Santa Ana, CA 92701, the same court that approved the Disneyland settlement. You will not need to go to the courthouse to begin. Our team files the case, and most matters end without a court appearance by you.

Employment Cases We Handle for Anaheim Workers

Serving Anaheim and Nearby Communities

We represent employees across Anaheim, including the Resort District, the Platinum Triangle, and Anaheim Hills, and in nearby Garden Grove and Santa Ana. Outside the area? Our statewide employment practice covers the rest of California.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Anaheim have a higher minimum wage than California?

Only for some jobs. Measure L requires resort-area hospitality employers tied to city subsidies to pay a higher rate, which reached $20.42 an hour in 2025 and rises each year (Top Class Actions). Other Anaheim jobs follow the California rate of $16.90 per hour (California Department of Industrial Relations).

I work at a resort hotel or theme park. Does Measure L cover me?

Possibly. Coverage depends on whether your employer is a hospitality business in the resort area that benefits from a city subsidy, such as a tax rebate. Disney argued it was exempt, and an appeals court ruled otherwise, which led to the $233 million settlement for about 51,000 workers (Top Class Actions). A lawyer can dig into your employer’s arrangements with the city.

Can my employer keep tips or service charges?

It cannot keep tips. Every tip belongs to the employee who earned it, and your employer cannot count tips toward your minimum wage (Labor Code section 351). If Measure L covers your employer, the ordinance also sets rules for the service charges owed to workers, and the Disneyland class sought those amounts too.

How much does an Anaheim employment lawyer cost?

Our fee comes only from a win. We handle cases on contingency, so you do not pay anything unless we win. The case evaluation is free, and you will not pay for legal counsel or court fees out of pocket. If there is no recovery, you owe no attorney fees.

Request a Free Anaheim Employment Law Case Review

If you work in the resort area and your pay never matched Measure L, or anything else at work does not add up, find out where you stand. Call (213) 493-6300 or request a free case review. The consultation is free and confidential, with no obligation. You do not pay ANYTHING unless we win!

Last updated: September 2026. This page offers general information, not legal advice. For advice about your situation, speak with a licensed California employment attorney.