Senate Bill No. 607
(By Senators Caruth, Barnes and Yoder)
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[Introduced March 21, 2005; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §21-5-4 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to employee wages owed on
termination of employment; and providing that liquidated
damages for failure to pay a terminated employee wages owed
may not exceed
the amount of wages the person, firm or
corporation failed to pay when due
.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §21-5-4 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. WAGE PAYMENT AND COLLECTION.
§21-5-4. Cash orders; employees separated from payroll before
paydays.
(a) In lieu of lawful money of the United States, any person,
firm or corporation may compensate employees for services by cash
order which may include checks or money orders on banks convenient to the place of employment where suitable arrangements have been
made for the cashing of such checks by employees for the full
amount of wages.
(b) Whenever a person, firm or corporation discharges an
employee, such the person, firm or corporation shall pay the
employee's wages in full within seventy-two hours.
(c) Whenever an employee quits or resigns, the person, firm or
corporation shall pay the employee's wages no later than the next
regular payday, either through the regular pay channels or by mail
if requested by the employee, except that if the employee gives at
least one pay period's notice of intention to quit the person, firm
or corporation shall pay all wages earned by the employee at the
time of quitting.
(d) When work of any employee is suspended as a result of a
labor dispute, or when an employee for any reason whatsoever is
laid off, the person, firm or corporation shall pay in full to such
the employee not later than the next regular payday, either through
the regular pay channels or by mail if requested by the employee,
wages earned at the time of suspension or layoff.
(e) If a person, firm or corporation fails to pay an employee
wages as required under this section, such the person, firm or
corporation shall, in addition to the amount due, be liable to the
employee for liquidated damages in the amount of wages at his or
her regular rate for each day the employer is in default, until he or she is paid in full, without rendering any service therefor:
Provided, however, That he or she shall cease to draw such the
wages thirty days after such the default: Provided, however, That
the person, firm or corporation is not liable to the employee for
liquidated damages for a period of more than thirty days after the
failure to pay the wages: Provided further, That the amount of
liquidated damages may not exceed the amount of wages the person,
firm or corporation failed to pay when due. Every employee shall
have such the lien and all other rights and remedies for the
protection and enforcement of such his or her salary or wages, as
he or she would have been entitled to had he or she rendered
service therefor in the manner as last employed; except that, for
the purpose of such liquidated damages, such the failure shall not
be deemed to continue after the date of the filing of a petition in
bankruptcy with respect to the employer if he or she is adjudicated
bankrupt upon such petition.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide
that liquidated
damages for failure to pay a terminated employee wages owed may not
exceed
the amount of wages the person, firm or corporation failed
to pay when due
.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.