Bills · 2013-2014 Regular Session
Relating to: the provision by employers to employees of written disclosure statements of the terms of employment, the filing and investigation of wage claims, the statute of limitations for filing a wage claim action, the payment of interest, penalties, and surcharges on wage claims, occupational or professional licensing of employers that owe wages under wage claim judgments, and making an appropriation. (FE)
Attorney — Fee Circuit court Civil service Court — Fee Damage _personal injury_ Employment Employment relations, joint committee on Judgment Justice, department of Limitation of action Trades and occupations Wage Walters, steve Workforce development, department of Wynn, lauri j
- Introduced, stopped here
- Passes Senate, not reached
- Passes Assembly, not reached
- Governor signs, not reached
- Law, not reached
Unfamiliar terms? Glossary
What this bill does
Plain-language analysis by the nonpartisan Legislative Reference Bureau
Current law
Wage claims
Filing and investigation of; statute of limitations.
Under current law, an
employee who has a claim that his or her employer has not paid the employee any
wages that are owed to the employee (wage claim) may either: 1) file the wage claim
with the Department of Workforce Development (DWD), which may attempt to settle
and compromise the wage claim or commence an action in circuit court against the
employer on the employee's behalf to collect the wage claim; or 2) commence an action
in circuit court on his or her own behalf to collect the wage claim without first filing
a wage claim with DWD. An action in circuit court to collect a wage claim must be
commenced no later than two years after the wage claim is filed with DWD or, if the
wage claim is not first filed with DWD, no later than two years after the cause of
action accrues (statute of limitations) and DWD may investigate a wage claim only
if it is filed no later than two years after the wages are due.
Increased wages.
Under current law, if a wage claim action is commenced in
circuit court
before
DWD has completed its attempt to settle and compromise the
claim, the circuit court may order the employer to pay, in addition to the amount of
wages unpaid, increased wages of not more than
50
percent of the amount of wages
unpaid. If a wage claim action is commenced in circuit court
after
DWD has
completed its attempt to settle and compromise the claim, the circuit court may order
the employer to pay, in addition to the amount of wages unpaid, increased wages of
not more than
100
percent of the amount of wages unpaid.
The bill
Wage claims
Filing and investigation of; statute of limitations.
This bill permits an
employee to file a wage claim with DWD or to commence a wage claim action in circuit
court not only in his or her own behalf but also on behalf of other employees similarly
situated who consent in writing to being parties to the claim or action. The bill also
increases the statute of limitations for a wage claim action to four years after the
What it would cost
Fiscal estimates filed by state agencies, as official PDFs
Sponsors
Full history
- Nov 11, 2013 · Senate
Introduced by Senators Wirch, Carpenter, Harris, Lehman, Miller, Risser and L. Taylor; cosponsored by Representatives Ohnstad, Johnson, Barnes, Berceau, Hebl, Pasch, Pope, Shankland, C. Taylor and Young
- Nov 11, 2013 · Senate
Read first time and referred to Committee on Workforce Development, Forestry, Mining, and Revenue
- Dec 3, 2013 · Senate
Fiscal estimate received
- Apr 8, 2014 · Senate
Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1