Representative Chris Lee says his bill would subject employers who willingly withhold money from their employees’ paychecks to criminal charges.
Thursday, February 27th 2020
Have you ever felt like you’ve been underpaid? A new bill could help prevent that from happening to you.
A bill moving through the capitol looks to crack down on companies that commit wage theft.
Representative Chris Lee says his bill would subject employers who willingly withhold money from their employees’ paychecks to criminal charges. Violators could face up to five years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines.
“In cases around the country we’ve seen employers intentionally dock wages from their employees, underpay their employees, pocket the money themselves, and in those cases they can be charged with a felony — which could be thousands of dollars, years in prison, because that is the same as someone going to a store nearby and robbing them of the same amount of money. So this protects workers from exploitation,” Lee said.
Under current law, the penalties for employers convicted of wage fraud ranges from a fine of $50 to up to a year in prison.