Washington, D.C. – Today Senator Mike Braun and Congresswoman Elise Stefanik introduced legislation to ensure America’s workers receive the wages they are owed and help employers comply with the law.
In 2018, the U.S. Department of Labor launched the Payroll Audit Independent Determination (PAID) pilot program to provide an efficient method for employers to proactively rectify inadvertent overtime and minimum wage violations. This resulted in employees receiving 100 percent of the back wages they were owed in a more timely manner. But the Biden Administration falsely claimed it deprived workers of their rights and abruptly ended the PAID program in January 2021. Stefanik and Braun are working to codify the PAID program, so this proven tool will stay in practice to support both employers and employees.
“The PAID program has been successful in helping employers correct inadvertent wage and hour violations on their own to ensure employees are getting paid the wages they have earned. The Ensuring Workers Get PAID Act will set this program down in law so employers can resolve oversights quickly and stay in compliance with the law,” Senator Mike Braun said.
“Our economy runs on America’s workers and job creators,” Stefanik said. “I’m proud to introduce this legislation that would ensure workers receive the wages they’ve earned while helping employers quickly identify and correct any inadvertent payroll mistakes. This commonsense approach is key to supporting our workforce and helping well-intentioned employers comply with the law”.
The Ensuring Workers Get PAID Act would specifically:
• Help more workers receive the wages they earned when employers make mistakes;
• Allow employees to receive any unpaid minimum wage or overtime compensation faster and without litigation;
• Protect employee rights and leave the decision to resolve identified violations in the hands of each employee; and
• Encourage employers to self-audit pay practices to correct mistakes and quickly deliver any back wages owed to employees.
Senator Braun and Congresswoman Stefanik were joined by Senator Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Congresswoman Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.), Congressman Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.), and Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa) in introducing this legislation.
Read more about the legislation here.
