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S. 1652: Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act

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S. 1652: Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act

115th Congress · introduced 2017-07-27 · Labor and Employment · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2017-07-27 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Sen. Murray, Patty [D-WA] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act

Plain summary

Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act This bill amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) to require employers to make initial disclosures to employees of the terms of their employment, provide such employees with regular paystubs, and make final payment to a terminating employee for uncompensated hours within 14 days of the employee's termination. An employer shall compensate an employee at the rate specified in an employment contract or other employment agreement, including a collective bargaining agreement, that specifies a rate of pay higher than the minimum wage rate. The bill establishes new and increased civil and criminal penalties for violations of FLSA overtime or minimum wage requirements, including referral to the Department of Justice for criminal prosecution of employers who engage in wage theft, falsification of wage records, or retaliation against employees. The bill: (1) increases damages for employees who are victims of wage theft from two to three times the wages owed or who are fired for filing a complaint concerning wage theft or for cooperating in an investigation by the Department of Labor, (2) revises requirements for wage recordkeeping by employers and establishes penalties for violations of those requirements, (3) grants employees the right to inspect employer wage records, and (4) increases the statute of limitation for bringing a claim for owed wages from two to four years (three to five years for willful violations). Labor must award grants to assist certain entities in the enforcement of FLSA wage and hour requirements.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Murray, Patty [D-WA] · 21 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Richard J. Durbin (D-IL), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Christopher Murphy (D-CT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Cory A. Booker (D-NJ), Bernard Sanders (I-VT), Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Tina Smith (D-MN), Tim Kaine (D-VA)

Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Murray, Patty [D-WA] reported raising $3.6 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (2)
Bill
A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Statute
A written law passed by a legislature. A statute can be changed by a later law; changing a constitution needs an amendment.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong115-s1652 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong115 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong115