Washington, D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray quietly signed an amendment to the Wage Theft Prevention Act which will likely take effect in mid-December 2014 – just in time for the holidays. The amended Act will significantly expand D.C. employers' obligations to employees, including comprehensive new pay notice requirements for all existing employees and new hires going forward. The Act also increases penalties and damages for violating various D.C. wage-hour and leave laws, places higher evidentiary burdens on employers seeking to defend against such claims, and creates an expedited administrative enforcement process that employees can trigger in lieu of a civil action.
While employers in New York, California and some other states are already familiar with similarly broad and burdensome wage theft laws and pay notice requirements, D.C. employers must now act quickly to learn the ins and outs of the Act, prepare for the Act's enactment and ensure compliance. Please see Proskauer's recent Client Alert for more detailed information concerning the Act's new requirements, penalties, and suggested best practices for employers.
Proskauer's D.C. office and its Labor & Employment lawyers have extensive experience assisting employers with pay notices and payroll practices, wage-hour classifications and compliance audits under both federal and state/local laws, as well as training human resources professionals in these areas of the law.
D.C. Prepares A Holiday "Gift" For Employers – The Wage Theft Prevention Amendment Act Of 2014
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