How to Claim Money Owed by Your Employer: A Step-by-Step Guide

Is Your Employer Owed Money: You can find out if your employer owes you back wages by using an online resource just shared on social media by a government agency.

Employees can check if their employers owe them back wages using the Department of Labor’s Workers Owed Wages tool. Last year, the system helped send $26.9 million to workers.

As a result of investigations conducted by the department’s Wage and Hour division, which enforces federal labor laws, workers may be owed money for employer violations. For example, employers may be required to reimburse their employees’ wages if they fail to adequately compensate them for overtime.

The Department of Labor sometimes fails to locate people who owe money despite its best efforts.

In one of the largest recent cases, workers at Philadelphia-based U.S. Medical Staffing were ordered to pay over $9 million in back wages and damages.

Unclaimed funds are sent to the Treasury after three years.

It only takes a few minutes and it could be worth your time to find out if your current or former employer owes you money. Last year, workers received an average of $1,300 in back wages.

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Finding unclaimed wages and unpaid wages

In order to use the Department of Labor’s online tool, enter your employer’s name and your name to determine if you owe back wages.

Finally, follow the remaining instructions and submit any required documents to finalize your claim. The Wage and Hour division can be reached at 1-866-487-9243 if you cannot locate unpaid wages.

You can also find money under your name by using the Workers Owed Wages tool or other government websites.

If you are still looking for unclaimed funds, you can continue your search by using Treasury Hunt, a search tool that locates unpaid Treasury Securities and interest. Alternatively, you can search state treasuries’ websites to see if you can claim any unclaimed assets.