Bill Text: FL S0926 | 2014 | Regular Session | Comm Sub

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Wage Theft

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (? 2-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-05-02 - Died on Calendar [S0926 Detail]

Download: Florida-2014-S0926-Comm_Sub.html

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       Florida Senate - 2014                              CS for SB 926
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Judiciary; and Senator Simpson
       
       
       
       
       
       590-03145-14                                           2014926c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to local regulation of wage theft;
    3         creating s. 448.111, F.S.; defining terms; requiring a
    4         county that decides to create a local solution to wage
    5         theft to adopt one of two processes and specifying the
    6         requirements of those processes; providing an
    7         exception for an ordinance enacted by a specified
    8         date; providing an effective date.
    9          
   10  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   11  
   12         Section 1. Section 448.111, Florida Statutes, is created to
   13  read:
   14         448.111 Local regulation of wage theft.—
   15         (1) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term:
   16         (a) “Legal services organization” means an organization
   17  that provides free or low-cost legal services to qualified
   18  persons and meets the minimum standards established by The
   19  Florida Bar for providing such services, including a legal
   20  practice clinic operated by an accredited Florida law school.
   21         (b) “Wage theft” means an illegal or improper underpayment
   22  or nonpayment of an individual employee’s wage, salary,
   23  commission, or other similar form of compensation within a
   24  reasonable time after the date on which the employee performed
   25  the work to be compensated. A wage theft occurs when an employer
   26  fails to pay a portion of the wages, salary, commissions, or
   27  other similar forms of compensation due to an employee within a
   28  reasonable time after the date on which the employee performed
   29  the work, according to the current applicable rate and the pay
   30  schedule of the employer established by policy or practice.
   31         (2) LOCAL ORDINANCES.—Upon the determination by a county
   32  that a local solution to wage theft is necessary, the county
   33  shall adopt a local ordinance that includes one of the following
   34  processes:
   35         (a) Legal services organization process.—The county may
   36  partner with a local legal services organization for the purpose
   37  of establishing a local process through which claims of wage
   38  theft shall be addressed by the legal services organization. The
   39  county may partner with a legal services organization located in
   40  that county or in an adjoining county.
   41         1. An individual who has experienced wage theft may contact
   42  the legal services organization for assistance in recovering
   43  wages. The legal services organization shall determine whether
   44  the individual has a bona fide claim for unpaid wages.
   45         2. The legal services organization shall notify the
   46  employer and provide the employer with an opportunity to resolve
   47  the matter of unpaid wages in the manner deemed most appropriate
   48  to each claim. The notification may occur by telephone, written
   49  correspondence, or any other means deemed appropriate by the
   50  legal services organization.
   51         3. The legal services organization shall work with the
   52  employee and employer to resolve the issue informally but
   53  expeditiously. The informal resolution may include obtaining
   54  attorney fees and costs from the employer.
   55         4. The legal services organization shall file court actions
   56  as appropriate and refer unresolved claims to local pro bono or
   57  other counsel for resolution.
   58         5. The county shall establish a reporting mechanism through
   59  which the county receives regular reports regarding the legal
   60  services organization’s work on cases of wage theft. The county
   61  may require periodic reports.
   62         (b) Administrative process.—The county may establish an
   63  administrative process that gives the parties involved the
   64  opportunity to negotiate a resolution with regard to the wages
   65  in question.
   66         1. The county shall establish a system that provides for:
   67         a. A complaint process by which a complaint, which must
   68  allege a wage theft violation, may be submitted to the county by
   69  or on behalf of an aggrieved employee; and
   70         b. Service of the complaint and written notice on the
   71  respondent employer alleged to have committed a wage theft
   72  violation, which sets forth the allegations made in the
   73  complaint and the rights and obligations of the parties. Such
   74  rights and obligations shall include the right of the respondent
   75  to file an answer to the complaint and the rights of both
   76  parties to a conciliation process and to a hearing on the matter
   77  before a county hearing officer. The hearing officer must have
   78  either a legal background or specialized training in the subject
   79  matter. The final determination of a hearing officer is subject
   80  to appeal to a court of competent jurisdiction.
   81         2. The system established must encourage the parties to
   82  conciliate the charges and resolve the matter. A hearing officer
   83  may not be appointed unless the matter is not resolved using the
   84  process established in this paragraph.
   85         3. If a preponderance of the evidence demonstrates a wage
   86  theft violation, the hearing officer shall order the employer to
   87  pay wage theft restitution to the affected employee along with
   88  liquidated damages and any administrative costs.
   89         4. The regulation of wage theft through local ordinance
   90  shall be limited to requiring that employers pay their employees
   91  for work performed at the agreed upon rate of pay plus any
   92  penalties as set forth herein and establishing a fair procedure
   93  and program to review and enforce wage agreements.
   94         5. Any wage recovery system established pursuant to this
   95  paragraph must provide that an employee who is not timely paid
   96  wages, final compensation, or wage supplements by his or her
   97  employer as required is entitled to recover through a claim
   98  filed in a process or program established under this paragraph
   99  in the employee’s county of employment or in a civil action, but
  100  not both.
  101         6. The county shall establish a reporting mechanism through
  102  which the county receives regular reports regarding cases of
  103  wage theft. The county may require periodic reports.
  104         7.a. Upon a finding of wage theft, the employer shall be
  105  liable for the actual back wages due and owing and may be liable
  106  for administrative costs in an amount not to exceed $1,500. If
  107  the employer is found to have acted in good faith or if the
  108  hearing officer has reason to believe that the act or omission
  109  was not intentional or was not wage theft, the administrative
  110  costs against the employer may be waived. In addition,
  111  liquidated damages shall be awarded to the employee but are
  112  limited to twice the amount a respondent employer is found to
  113  have unlawfully failed to pay the complainant employee.
  114         b. In addition to the actual back wages due and liquidated
  115  damages, an employer found to have committed a second violation
  116  shall be fined $1,000 and an employer found to have committed a
  117  third and subsequent violation shall be fined $2,000. An
  118  employer who commits a second or subsequent violation may be
  119  liable for administrative costs in an amount not to exceed
  120  $2,500.
  121         8. Any claim brought under this paragraph is subject to a
  122  statute of limitations of 1 year from the last date upon which
  123  wages were due to the employee for the wage theft incident that
  124  is the subject of the wage theft claim.
  125         (3) FUNDING.—The county may dedicate county funds to assist
  126  the legal services organization process or the administrative
  127  process under subsection (2) in addressing claims of wage theft.
  128         (4) CURRENT ORDINANCES.—A local ordinance governing wage
  129  theft which was enacted on or before January 1, 2014, is not
  130  preempted by this section.
  131         Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.