Unpaid Wage Liability: Pa. Court Sets 3-Year Deadline for Minimum Wage Suits
Pennsylvania employers face a three-year window for employees to sue over unpaid minimum wages or overtime under state law, rather than the six years a trial court previously allowed.
The ruling came in a case involving 20 pharmacy employees seeking overtime for work done from 2017 to 2019. The employers argued the claims were filed too late to create any wage liability.
Wage Liability Time Frame Was Undefined
The Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act doesn’t set its own deadline for wage lawsuits. As a result, the trial court applied the six-year default deadline for lawsuits without a set limit.
On Oct. 21, the Commonwealth Court disagreed. It applied the Wage Payment and Collection Law’s three-year deadline to these claims. It also cited Pennsylvania’s requirement that employers keep time and pay records for three years.
The decision reinforces the need to keep accurate payroll records for at least three years to defend against potential claims and manage wage liability.
More info: Commonwealth Department of Labor and Industry v. Accuserv Pharmacy, Inc.
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