OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Department of Labor (ODOL) awarded nearly $1 million in unpaid wages and benefits to Oklahoma employees this past fiscal year.
OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Department of Labor (ODOL) awarded nearly $1 million in unpaid wages and benefits to Oklahoma employees this past fiscal year.
The total for FY 2019 (July 1, 2018 – June 30, 2019) included $839,909 in unpaid wages and benefits plus $88,400 in liquidated damages, for a total of $928,309. That sum was an 85% increase over ODOL collections of approximately $500,000 in unpaid wages and benefits that were recovered in FY 2018, ledgers reflect.
The increase was due in large part to claims brought against struggling healthcare providers and municipal hospitals, said Don Schooler, legal counsel for the Labor Department.
“There was a marked increase in wage claims this past fiscal year from rural hospitals and healthcare providers,” he said.
“A majority of the wages were for employees’ final pay checks and were awarded to employees who might not otherwise receive payment, as their claims were too small to attract the attention of most attorneys,” Schooler said.
“While most wage claims are only a few hundred to a thousand dollars apiece, they are often the difference between a family making its mortgage payment, or paying their bills on time, or putting food on the table,” he said.
CIVIL ACTION
In any case where a civil action may be brought for collection of a wage claim, the Labor Commissioner “may provide for an administrative proceeding to determine the validity and enforce collection of the claim,” state law provides.
In general, if an employer fails to pay its workers’ wages due for their labor, the employer “shall be additionally liable” to pay the employee liquidated damages in the amount of 2% of the unpaid wages, state statute decrees.
COLLECTION ISSUE
If an order for payment of unpaid wages and benefits becomes final and the amount due is not paid within 20 days, the order can be listed in the county clerk’s lien record and “may be collected as any other money judgment,” statute provides.
If overdue wages remain unpaid despite an ODOL administrative order, “then it becomes a collection issue,” Schooler said. The aggrieved worker is entitled by law to retain an attorney or hire a collection agent to secure payment of unpaid wages and liquidated damages.
“Most employers want to do the right thing,” Schooler said. “But for some, times are tough.”
The state Labor Department “is committed to ensuring the rights of unpaid workers,” said Labor Commissioner Leslie Osborn. “Many members of the workforce might not have the resources to go through the court system. People work hard with the expectation of being paid a fair wage in a timely manner. Our priority is recovering wages for people who are owed wages for time worked.”
In addition to the awarded wages, the ODOL’s Wage and Hour Division answered thousands of telephone calls from concerned employees and helped hundreds of employers comply with Oklahoma’s Protection of Labor Act and the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, Osborn said.
Oklahoma employees who believe they have not been fully compensated for their labors or benefits, or have been paid lower wages solely because of their gender, are encouraged to contact the ODOL’s Wage and Hour Division at (405) 521-6100 or complete an online Wage Claim Form found at www.ok.gov/odol.