To put it simply, if you put the work in, you are entitled to be paid for it. Under the laws of Delaware, Pennsylvania, and most of the United States, if an employee is left unpaid, the laws are incredibly protective and supportive of that employee recouping his or her wages from the individual or entity that owes those wages.

In Delaware, “wages” can take on a number of meanings. It is not just per-hour wages or salary, it can be commissions, bonuses, and other benefits that the employee regularly receives from the employer. It can even be the pay-out of an employee’s accrued vacation or sick time that the employer had previously agreed to pay upon separation with the employee.

If the employer does not pay these wages when they are regularly due (or agreed to be due), an employee has an arsenal of weapons at his or her disposal to recoup those wages pursuant to the Delaware Wage Payment and Collection Act. Not only can an employee recover the wages owed to him or her, an employee can recover up to double that amount along with the attorneys’ fees and costs expended to recover those monies. These “extras” available to an employee provides the employee much leverage over the employer to recover unpaid wages while avoiding a long, drawn-out litigation in Court. Further, decision-making individuals within the employer-entity can be held personally liable in addition to the entity itself.

While these principles may seem simple, Wage Claims can prove to be a complex area of the law in which it becomes important to have an experienced employment attorney in your corner. If you have not received wages that you believe you are owed, contact us for a consultation: