On September 4, 2025, the Labor Commissioner’s Office (LCO) reported that it ordered J BBQ, a Koreatown restaurant in Los Angeles, California, to pay more than $680,000 for wage theft and other labor violations affecting 48 workers. Investigators found that the restaurant operated by Midri, Inc. and its owner Byung Kwan Lee, failed to pay workers earned wages, failed to provide meal and rest breaks, made employees work during purported lunch breaks, and failed to pay split-shift premiums wages. Additionally, the employers purportedly provided the employees incomplete or inaccurate paystubs.
This investigation began after the Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance, which advocates for workers in the restaurant and retail industries, reported these pay issues to the LCO. Out of the total $600,000 in penalties, $538,638 is supposed to be paid directly to the affected employees.