Governor Walz Celebrates Bipartisan Wage Theft Legislation with Advocates, Legislators

Statement

Today, Governor Tim Walz held a signing ceremony for bipartisan provisions of H.F. 2, the Omnibus Jobs and Economic Development budget, creating increased protections for Minnesota workers against wage theft.

The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry estimates that around 40,000 Minnesota workers pursue wage theft claims annually, and nearly $12 million dollars a year are lost due to wage theft. Wage theft can take the form of underpayment of minimum wage; nonpayment of overtime compensation or mandatory breaks; misclassification of employees; and other means. The new legislation increases protections for workers and classifies wage theft as a felony.

"If you earn a wage, you should be paid a wage," said Governor Tim Walz. "If a worker has their wages stolen, it is no different than any other kind of theft. For too long, bad employers have taken wages from hardworking Minnesotans, with little to no recourse for the workers. Thank you to the legislators and advocates who took a collaborative approach to establish greater protections and get this done."

"The promise of America is that if you work hard and play by the rules, you'll get ahead. But you can't get ahead if your boss is stealing your hard-earned wages," said Attorney General Keith Ellison. "Wage theft is straight-up theft, but for too long, it's been hard to hold bad employers accountable. That's hurt not only the workers who've had their wages stolen, but the many good businesses who play by the rules, and the folks who work for them, too. Now, Minnesota has the strongest law against wage theft in the country. In addition, I've started a new Wage Theft Unit in the Attorney General's Office dedicated solely to using all the powers the law gives us to investigate wage theft and enforce the new law. I thank Representative Mahoney and Senator Pratt, Governor Walz, Commissioner Leppink, and staff in my office who worked hard to make this day happen. Above all, I congratulate this the workers, unions, and advocates who've been fighting for this for years. This is your win."

"Minnesota's new wage theft law creates additional protections for workers, adds criminal penalties for employers who commit wage theft and levels the playing field for employers who play by the rules and pay a fair wage," said Department of Labor and Industry Commissioner Nancy Leppink.

Effective July 1, 2019, new requirements for all Minnesota employers include providing an employee notice upon employment and additional information for already-required earnings statements and employer recordkeeping. Beginning August 1, 2019, increased enforcement of state wage and hour laws and criminal penalties for employers that commit wage theft is also effective, expanding the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry's and the Attorney General's enforcement authority and increasing penalties for employers when wage theft occurs.

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