Are you one of thousands of Philly-area workers owed back wages? The U.S. Labor Department has millions in unclaimed money
The federal government is holding millions of unclaimed dollars for workers who were paid unfairly, and the clock is ticking for them to claim it.
The U.S. Department of Labor is holding onto $16.4 million for 16,000 Pennsylvania workers who were the victims of wage law violations. Officials are trying to get the word out so the money is claimed.
Much of that money is owed to workers in Philadelphia, Chester, Montgomery, and Delaware Counties. In the region, 12,795 workers are entitled to $13 million in back wages — over $1,000 per affected worker, on average.
The department’s Wage and Hour Division recovered that money after investigating employers for labor law violations. While employers don’t get to keep the unclaimed funds, the government holds onto it for workers for only three years before the funds are turned over to the U.S. Department of Treasury.
In 2023, the division recovered $274 million for more than 163,000 workers across the United States.
Jim Cain, the Wage and Hour district director for Philadelphia, said that his division can often obtain employee contact information through the employer and that news releases and coworker word of mouth also help with notifying workers who are owed back wages.
“Sometimes employers don’t keep good records; sometimes they may have only a partial name in their records. There are times when they’re not paying people on the record, so they don’t necessarily have a record at all from the employer,” Cain said.
How to check if you have unclaimed wages
Workers don’t have to wait for contact from the government to see if they have unclaimed wages. The Labor Department has an online tool for workers to find out whether they’re owed wages and claim them if so.
The tool, called Workers Owed Wages, is available in English and Spanish. The department disbursed nearly $27 million through the system to almost 4,000 workers in 2023.
Cain said home health care, restaurants, and gas stations have been among the more frequent violators of wage and hour laws in the region. Sometimes employers aren’t aware they’re violating the law because of specific job-related tasks that don’t get compensated, he noted.
For instance, Cain said, a worker who is required to wear protective gear for their job should be allowed to punch the clock before putting on that gear each day and clock out after removing it.
In addition to using the online tool, workers who have questions about wage and hour issues or who think they have back wages to claim can contact the Wage and Hour Division at 215-597-4950.
The department can answer calls in over 200 languages, and Cain made note that individuals’ immigration status is not a factor in their ability to receive back wages owed to them.
“We don’t even ask about it,” Cain said. “If somebody is in the U.S. working, then they’re covered by the applicable laws, and we would treat them just like anybody else.”