Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act

This bill would change federal wage law to require employers to give workers written pay disclosures when hired, a paystub each pay period, and a final paycheck within 14 days after a job ends. It would require employers to pay any higher wage rate promised in a contract, raise the damages workers can recover to include interest plus two times unpaid wages, and add or raise civil fines and criminal penalties for wage violations. It would extend the time limit for filing wage claims from 2 years to 4 years (5 years for willful violations) and pause that time limit during Labor Department investigations. It would also bar employers from requiring workers to give up their right to sue as a condition of employment, and create a Labor Department grant program for groups that help prevent wage violations and recover unpaid wages.

Full text and official record on Congress.gov

Sponsors

• Rosa L. DeLauro Democrat sponsor
• 28 cosponsors