Kanye West sued by former Yeezy employee for unpaid overtime and other California labor violations

Kanye West sued by former Yeezy employee for unpaid overtime and failure to compensate for work-required travel to Wyoming and Paris

  • Taliah Leslie says worked for Yeezy as an Assistant Designer
  • She claims that Yeezy regularly misclassified employees as independent contractors despite their responsibilities as full-time company employees
  • She says Yeezy failed to pay her for out-of-town travel required for the job
  • These trips included West’s Cody, Wyoming compound as well as Paris, France 
  • Leslie says Yeezy failed to keep accurate payroll records of hours and wages
  • She is seeking civil penalties, attorney fees, and any other appropriate relief
  • West is also being sued by employees of his 2019 Nebuchadnezzar Opera 
  • He reportedly owes unpaid wages and failed to pay minimum wage and overtime

Kanye West is being sued by a former Yeezy employee who alleges he failed to pay her for work she was required to do off-the-clock, in addition to other violations of California labor law. 

Taliah Leslie claims that Yeezy regularly misclassified employees as independent contractors despite their responsibilities as full-time company employees, in turn depriving them of wages and other benefits, according to documents obtained by The Blast.

Leslie, who says she worked for Yeezy as an Assistant Designer, is seeking civil penalties pursuant to the California labor code violations she is claiming, as well as attorney fees, and any other relief the Court may deem appropriate.   

In legal trouble: Kanye West is being sued by a former Yeezy employee who alleges he failed to pay her for work she was required to do off-the-clock, in addition to other violations of California labor law. He’s seen in 2013 above

The former employee has also accused Yeezy of not compensating her for out-of-town travel which was required for the job, including trips to West’s Cody, Wyoming compound as well as Paris, France.

She claims she was not paid for overtime work hours or given California state-mandated meal breaks, nor was she reimbursed for cell phone, internet usage, or expenses associated with the compulsory travel which was required to perform her job duties.

Additionally, Leslie says Yeezy failed to keep accurate payroll records of the total hours worked and wages paid, in violation of the California Labor Code.

She has filed suit after making a claim with the California Labor & Workforce Development Agency in February which she says resulted in no notice of the agency’s intention to investigate within 65 calendar days.

Leslie believes she is entitled to civil action if the LWDA has chosen not to investigate the matter.

Work travel: The former employee has also accused Yeezy of not compensating her for out-of-town travel which was required for the job, including trips to West's Cody, Wyoming compound as well as Paris, France. Yeezy's Paris Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2020/2021 show is pictured above

Work travel: The former employee has also accused Yeezy of not compensating her for out-of-town travel which was required for the job, including trips to West’s Cody, Wyoming compound as well as Paris, France. Yeezy’s Paris Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2020/2021 show is pictured above

Out West: She claims she was not paid for overtime work hours or given California state-mandated meal breaks, nor was she reimbursed for cell phone, internet usage, or expenses associated with the compulsory travel which was required to perform her job duties. West's Wyoming ranch is seen above

Out West: She claims she was not paid for overtime work hours or given California state-mandated meal breaks, nor was she reimbursed for cell phone, internet usage, or expenses associated with the compulsory travel which was required to perform her job duties. West’s Wyoming ranch is seen above

DailyMail.com has reached out to West’s camp’s for comment.

The rapper/fashion designer is already facing a lawsuit from workers for the Kanye West Nebuchadnezzar Opera.

West reportedly owes staff ‘unpaid wages’ and has been accused of ‘failing to pay minimum wage and overtime’.

Kanye debuted his opera at the Hollywood Bowl in 2019, and the bizarre 50-minute show was deemed to be a ‘money grab’ with Kanye only appearing on stage for the climactic photocall.

More drama: The rapper/fashion designer is already facing a lawsuit from workers at his live performance, Kanye West Nebuchadnezzar Opera, which debuted at the Hollywood Bowl in 2019

More drama: The rapper/fashion designer is already facing a lawsuit from workers at his live performance, Kanye West Nebuchadnezzar Opera, which debuted at the Hollywood Bowl in 2019

The Blast write that court documents claim a hair assistant who worked on the opera is owed ‘unpaid wages, continuing wages, damages, civil penalties, statutory penalties and attorney’s fees and costs’.

She added that ‘her day rate was paid late, along with other fees and that they were charged for getting their checks.’

The site adds that workers are ‘seeking at least $1 million for what they believe to be issues with how they were treated’.

Documents state: ‘Defendants oversaw, controlled and ran the production, and the aggrieved employees worked many hours on the production and were not timely paid for their work, or paid at all.’  

Moving around: West required MYC to move its headquarters from Pennsylvania to Calabasas, California, then to Chicago; shown in April 2019

Moving around: West required MYC to move its headquarters from Pennsylvania to Calabasas, California, then to Chicago; shown in April 2019