SB 40

This bill 1) makes various changes relating to claims that an employer has not

paid an employee wages that the employer owes to the employee (wage claims); 2)

requires employers to provide terms of employment statements to employees and

specifies penalties for employers that fail to provide or comply with the statement;

and 3) prohibits state agencies from issuing credentials or credential renewals to

employers with unpaid wage claims against them.

Wage claims

Current law

Filing and investigation; 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 may either 1) file the wage claim with the

Department of Workforce Development, 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). 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

Filing and investigation; statute of limitations.

This bill allows an

employee to file a wage claim with DWD or to commence a wage claim action in circuit

court not only on 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

wage claim is filed with DWD or, if the wage claim is not first filed with DWD, to four

years after the cause of action accrues and permits DWD to investigate a wage claim

that is filed no later than four years after the wages are due.