Costco faces Calif. lawsuit over after-hours wages

CHICAGO, May 15 (Reuters) - A California worker on Friday sued Costco Wholesale Corp (COST.O), alleging that the discount club operator forces workers to stay at its stores after hours without pay while supervisors complete closing activities.

The lawsuit, which seeks class action status, was filed in California Superior Court in San Diego. The lawsuit asks for at least $50 million in damages.

It accuses Costco of violating California labor law and other regulations laws.

Costco declined comment.

In the lawsuit, attorneys for Mary Pytelewski, a clerk at a Costco warehouse in San Marcos, California, alleged that she and other workers were forced to remain locked inside the store for about 15 minutes after their shift ended each night while supervisors and managers removed jewelry from cases and emptied cash registers.

The lawsuit said the managers falsely claimed that locking employees inside the store until the closing tasks were completed was necessary for security and theft prevention.

Last year, rival retailer Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) agreed to pay up to $640 million to settle 63 class action lawsuits that accused that retailer of wage violations. (Reporting by Brad Dorfman and Lisa Baertlein; Editing Bernard Orr)