General Assembly Raised Bill No. 798
January Session, 2011 LCO No. 2309
*02309_______LAB*
Referred to Committee on Labor and Public Employees
Introduced by:
(LAB)
General Assembly
Raised Bill No. 798
January Session, 2011
LCO No. 2309
*02309_______LAB*
Referred to Committee on Labor and Public Employees
Introduced by:
(LAB)
AN ACT REQUIRING DOUBLE DAMAGES BE AWARDED IN CIVIL ACTIONS TO COLLECT WAGES.
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 Section 31-72 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2011):
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 agreement between him and his 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.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2011 31-72
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1
October 1, 2011
31-72
Statement of Purpose:
To require twice the full amount of wages recovered by an employee or labor organization be awarded in a successful civil action to recover wages an employer has failed to pay.
[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.]