Illinois workers are owed more than $5M in back wages. How to check if you have a payment
More than 7,000 Illinois workers are owed back wages being held by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.
The federal agency reports it has more than $5 million in unclaimed wages that belong to Illinois workers as of January. The money remains unclaimed for a number of reasons, usually due to a change of address, a change of name or employers failing to have contact information for former employees.
Here’s what to know about unclaimed wages in Illinois and how to see if you’re owed a payment.
What are back wages?
Back wages can be ordered from an employer under the Wages and Fair Labor Standards Act, which covers multiple employee rights, including overtime, record keeping, minimum wage and more.
There are multiple ways back pay can be ordered under the FLSA, and those include, according to the federal DOL:
- The Wage and Hour Division supervises payment to owed workers.
- The secretary of labor brings a suit for back wages.
- An employee files private suit for back pay.
- The secretary of labor obtains an injunction to restrain anyone after violating the FLSA.
The collection of back wages is not uncommon in Illinois. In December, Greenridge Farms in Elk Grove agreed to pay $3 million in back wages, damages and interest to 283 workers after not following overtime pay requirements. An investigation found the company only issued checks for employees’ first 40 hours, then cash for any overtime pay, when the company was required to pay workers time and a half for all hours worked after 40.
Last February, a federal court ordered an Illinois home health care provider to pay $1.1 million in back wages and damages to 69 employees after failing to pay workers for every hour worked. That investigation found workers were paid a daily rate, but when looking at the number of hours worked, the rate was found to violate minimum wage and overtime requirements.
How to search for unclaimed wages
An online tool, called Workers Owed Wages (WOW), allows individuals to search and see if any back wages owed to them are being held by the federal agency.
As of January, 7,123 Illinois workers are owed a combined total of $5,109,650.77, according to a DOL spokesperson.
To use the portal, first search for your employer, enter your name, fill out your contact information and upload a signed form with your Social Security card, taxpayer identification card, driver’s license, W-2 and pay stub. The website is available in English and Spanish.
Workers who are owed money will be contacted by the Wage and Hour Division Office for check collection.
The DOL holds funds for three years before turning the money over to the U.S. Department of Treasury.
