Bill Text: CT HB05071 | 2014 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: An Act Concerning Civil Actions Against An Employer For Failure To Pay Wages Or Compensation.
Spectrum: Committee Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-04-04 - Referred by House to Committee on Judiciary [HB05071 Detail]
Download: Connecticut-2014-HB05071-Introduced.html
General Assembly |
Raised Bill No. 5071 | ||
February Session, 2014 |
LCO No. 316 | ||
*00316_______LAB* | |||
Referred to Committee on LABOR AND PUBLIC EMPLOYEES |
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Introduced by: |
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(LAB) |
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AN ACT CONCERNING CIVIL ACTIONS AGAINST AN EMPLOYER FOR FAILURE TO PAY WAGES OR COMPENSATION OR MAKE PAYMENTS TO AN EMPLOYEE WELFARE FUND.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 31-72 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2014):
When any employer fails to pay an employee wages in accordance with the provisions of sections 31-71a to 31-71i, inclusive, or fails to compensate an employee in accordance with section 31-76k or where an employee or a labor organization representing an employee institutes an action to enforce an arbitration award which requires an employer to make an employee whole or to make payments to an employee welfare fund, such employee or labor organization [may] shall recover, in a civil action, twice the full amount of such wages, with costs and such reasonable attorney's fees as may be allowed by the court, [and any] unless the employer establishes that the employer had a good faith belief that its underpayment of wages was in compliance with law. Any agreement between [him] an employee and his or her employer for payment of wages other than as specified in said sections shall be no defense to such action. The Labor Commissioner may collect the full amount of any such unpaid wages, payments due to an employee welfare fund or such arbitration award, as well as interest calculated in accordance with the provisions of section 31-265 from the date the wages or payment should have been received, had payment been made in a timely manner. In addition, the Labor Commissioner may bring any legal action necessary to recover twice the full amount of unpaid wages, payments due to an employee welfare fund or arbitration award, and the employer shall be required to pay the costs and such reasonable attorney's fees as may be allowed by the court. The commissioner shall distribute any wages, arbitration awards or payments due to an employee welfare fund collected pursuant to this section to the appropriate person.
Sec. 2. Subsection (e) of section 31-273 of the 2014 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2015):
(e) If the administrator determines that any person, firm or corporation has wilfully failed to declare the payment of wages on payroll records, the administrator may impose a penalty of ten per cent of the total contributions [past] due to the administrator during the entire period the person, firm or corporation wilfully failed to declare the payment of wages on payroll records, as determined pursuant to section 31-270. Such penalty shall be in addition to any other applicable penalty and interest under section 31-266. In addition, the administrator may require the person, firm or corporation to make contributions at the maximum rate provided in section 31-225a for a period of one year following the determination by the administrator concerning the wilful nondeclaration. If the person, firm or corporation is paying or should have been paying, the maximum rate at the time of the determination, the administrator may require that such maximum rate continue for a period of three years following the determination.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections: | ||
Section 1 |
October 1, 2014 |
31-72 |
Sec. 2 |
January 1, 2015 |
31-273(e) |
Statement of Purpose:
To allow employees or labor organizations to recover twice the full amount of damages associated with an employer's failure to pay wages unless the employer can demonstrate a good faith belief that it was complying with the law and to clarify the time period the administrator may use to calculate damages when any person, firm or corporation has wilfully failed to declare the payment of wages on payroll records.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]