Employment Law This Week®: Pay Data Collection, Strengthening Worker Protections, NJ’s “Wage Theft” Legislation
New Jersey Employers Face Tougher Penalties for “Wage Theft” - Employment Law This Week® - Trending News
On June 9, 2025, Governor Tina Kotek signed SB 426 into law. The bill, set to become effective on January 1, 2026, follows the Oregon Legislature’s ongoing attempts to pass a “wage theft” bill imposing strict liability on...more
Last week, a Hennepin County judge sentenced an employer following a first-of-its-kind criminal conviction for wage theft in Minnesota. Since its enactment in 2019, Minnesota’s Wage Theft Prevention Act has imposed stringent...more
On June 9, 2025, Oregon enacted Senate Bill 426, a significant new law aimed at protecting construction workers from wage theft by imposing strict joint and several liability on both property owners and direct contractors for...more
On January 4, 2022, Labor Law §198-e – known as New York’s Wage Theft Law – went into effect. The Wage Theft Law, which applies to private construction projects, makes the prime/general contractor responsible for unpaid wages...more
In Oregon, unpaid workers can sue their employers directly or file administrative complaints with the U.S. Department of Labor or its state counterpart, the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI). Workers often file...more
Developers, owners, and contractors would all be wise to take note of Senate Bill 426, currently under consideration in the Oregon legislature....more
Illinois AG Kwame Raoul settled with TBJ Drywall & Taping, Inc. (TBJ), resolving allegations that the company misclassified employees and failed to pay overtime wages in violation of state labor and employment laws....more
In April 2022, we discussed new amendments to Virginia’s Prompt Payment Act and Wage Theft statute. Although the 2022 amendments changed payment terms for all construction contracts in Virginia, the amended statutes...more
The Virginia legislature recently took a broad step toward limiting the use of certain common clauses in construction subcontracts. This new legislation, effective January 1, 2023, amends the state's Prompt Payment Act...more
How Law Limiting Arbitration Agreements for Sexual Assault, Harassment Claims Affects Construction- In an industry often targeted by anti-discrimination agencies, construction industry employers need to be aware of a new...more
The scope for liability related to employee wage claims has changed dramatically for contractors and subcontractors operating in New York under a new law that shifts wage payment obligations to prime contractors....more
This article is a continuation of Monday’s article, and we will be discussing in detail the new payment terms for all construction contracts in Virginia....more
Effective January 4, 2022, New York’s amended wage theft laws enable a subcontractor’s employees to obtain judgments for unpaid wages directly against a contractor that hired their employer. The New York laws aim to provide...more
New York’s new wage theft law – expected to have a major impact on the construction industry state-wide – goes into effect on January 4, 2022 and will apply to contracts executed, modified, extended, or renewed from that date...more
The State of New York is poised to pass wage theft legislation that could have a major impact on the construction industry across the state. Among other things, it would impose greater liability risk on prime contractors and...more
Proposed New York legislation that would expose general contractors to increased liability for their subcontractors’ alleged wage theft is the subject of a new Report, co-authored by myself, issued by the New York City Bar...more
On April 12, 2020, Governor Northam signed a series of bills related to the non-payment of wages. New changes to Virginia’s wage payment laws significantly increase potential penalties against employers who fail to properly...more
Of the record number of new laws in Virginia, a trio of wage laws will arguably have the biggest impact on contractors changing the way the construction companies operate in Virginia. Virginia statutes on non-payment of...more
New York legislators passed into law the fiscal year 2020 $175.5-billion budget on April 1, 2019, fully funding state government for the next fiscal year. Among the provisions enacted are many that affect labor and employment...more
Continuing its aggressive enforcement of California wage and hour laws, the Labor Commission issued wage theft citations of $1.9 million to Fullerton Pacific Interiors, Inc. for failing to pay minimum wage and overtime and...more
In February 2018, the Oregon Legislature attempted to push through House Bill 4154, which would have made a general contractor liable for unpaid wages, including benefit payments and contributions, of an employee of a...more
General contractors’ top priorities on a construction project are completing the work on time, completing the work within budget, and guarding against future construction defect claims. New and pending laws in California,...more