District of Columbia Wage Theft Prevention Act Notice Mandatory

NOTICE	 	
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 	 	
DEPARTMENT OF EMPLOYMENT SERVICES	 	
Labor Standards Bureau 	 	
Office of Wage	-Hour	 	
The Wage Theft Prevention Amendment Act of 2014	 	
The Wage Theft Prevention Amendment Act of 2014 	(WTPAA) 	has an effective date of February 26, 	
2015.	 The law includes provisions to enhance applicable remedies, fines, and administrative penalties 	
when an employer fails to pay earned wages, to provide for suspension of business licenses of employers 
that are delinquent in paying wage judgments or agreeme	nts, to clarify administrative procedures and 	
legal standards for adjudicating wage disputes, to require the employer to provide written notice to each 
employee of the terms of their employment	, and to maintain appropriate employment records.	 	
Requirements	 	
W	ritten Employment Notice:  	 	
As an employer of the District of Columbia, upon hire, you are required to provide a notice to employees 
of their employment.  Also, within 90 days of the effective date of WTPAA	, every	 employer	 shall	 furnish	 	
each	 employee	 with	 an	 updated	 written	 notice	 containing	 the	 information	 required. As	 proof	 of 	
compliance,	 every	 employer 	shall	 retain	 copies	 of the	 written	 notice	 furnished	 to employees	 that	 are	 	
signed	 and	 dated	 by	 the	 employer	 and	 by	 the	 employee	 acknowledging	 receipt	 of the	 notice. (	There are 	
additional requirements for temporary staffing firms.	)  	
 
This notice must include:	 	
1) The	 na	 me	 of   the	 e mplo	y er a nd	 a ny	 “ doing	 busines	 s a s ” (DBA) 	na	 mes	 used	 by	 the	 e mplo	y er  	
2) The	 phy	 sica	 l a ddre	s s o f the	 e mplo	y er’s	 ma	 in o ffice	 o r principa	 l pla	 ce o f busi	 nes	 s, a nd	 a mailing	 	
address	 if different	 	
3) The	 telephone	 number	 of the	 employer	 	
4) The	 e mplo	y ee’s	 ra te o f pa	 y a nd	 the	 ba	sis	 o f that	 ra te,	 includi	 ng:	  	
a. 	Rate 	by	 the	 hour,	 shift	 , day	 , or w eek (whichever is 	applicable)	 	
b. Sa	 la ry, Piece Rate	, or commission 	(whichever is applicable)	 	
c. 	Any	 allowances	 claimed	 as part	 of the	 minimum	 wage,	 including	 tip,	 meal,	 or 	
lodging	 allowances	 	
d. Overtime	 rate	 of pay or 	exemptions	 from	 overtime	 pay	 	
e. 	Living	 wage or	 exemptions	 from	 the	 living wage	 	
f. 	Any	 applicable	 prevailing	 wages	 	
5) The	 e mplo	y ee’s	 reg	 ular	 pay	 day	 desig	 nated	 by	 the	 e mplo	y er

The	 Mayor	 shall	 make	 available	 for	 employers	 a sample 	template	 of the	 notice	 within	 60	 days	 of the	 	
effective	 date	 of the	 Wage	 Theft	 Prevention	 Amendment	 Act	 of 2014. (	Immediate Notice to new 	
employees is required regardless of the template release	 date	.) 	
Wage Payment Liability:  	 	
o 	When the employer is a subcontractor and 	has	 failed to pay an employee any wages earned, the 	
subcontractor and the general contractor shall be jointly and severally liable to the subcontractor’s 
employees for violations of this 	Act, the Living Wage Act, and the	 Accrued	 Sick and Safe Leave 	
Act. 	 	
 	
o 	Whe	n a temporary staffing firm employs an employee who performs work on behalf of or to the 	
benefit of another employer pursuant to a temporary staffing arrangement or contract for services, 
both the temporary staffing firm and the employer shall be jointly a	nd severally liable for 	
violations of this 	Act, the Living Wage Act, and the 	Accrued 	Sick and Safe Leave Act to the 	
employee and to the District.	 	
 	
o 	Every employer shall pay wages earned to his employees on regular paydays designated in 
advance by the employer and a	t least twice during each calendar month.	 	
Notice of Complaint 	 	
For any employer alleged to be in non	-compliance with the Act, The Mayor shall deliver 	two (	2) notices 	
to the employer	. 	
1. Notice of 	Complaint that specifies: 	 	
a. The alleged violation	 	
b. Potential damage	s, penalties	, and other cost	 	
c. 	Rights and 	obligations of the parties	 	
d. Process for contesting the complaint 	 	
2. Notice of Investigation that must be posted for all employees to see for a period of at least 30 
days that specifies:	 	
a. An 	investigation is being conducte	d 	
b. Information for employees on how they may participate 	 	
Rules against Retaliation	 	
The WTPAA extends the protection and it also gives the Mayor power to enforce this law.	 	
 	Threats are now included as a form of retaliation.	 	
 	It is illegal for 	any	 person to retaliate.	 	
 	This law protects employees even if their employer incorrectly believes they made a complaint.	 	
Procedural Options	 	
 	Wage	-Hour 	Investigation 	 	
 	Administrative Law Judge Hearing

 	Civil Court Proceedings	 	
Potential Penalties	 	
Wage Payment Penal	ties	, D.C. Official Code § 32	-1307; D.C. Official Code § 32	-1307(a) Section 7a 	
– Wage Theft Prevention Fund	 	
 	Any employer who negligently fails to comply with the provisions of this 	Act or the Living Wage 	
Act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon 	conviction, shall be fined:	 	
o 	For the first offense, an amount per affected employee o	f not more than $2,500; 	 	
for any subsequent offense, an amount per affected employee of not more than $5,000.	 	
 	Any employer who willfully fails to comply with the provisions	 of this 	Act or the Living Wage 	
Act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall	 be fined	:  	
o 	For the first offense, 	an amount	 not more than $5,000 or imprisoned not more than 30 	
days, or both; 	for any subsequent offense, 	an amount 	not more than $10,000,	 or 	
imprisoned not more than 90 days, or both. 	 	
In addition to and apart from any other penalties or remedies provided for in this 	Act or the Living 	
Wage Act, the Mayor shall assess and collect administrative penalties as follows:	 	
o 	For the first offense, $5	0 for each employee or person whose rights under this 	Act or the Living 	
Wage Act are violated for each day the violation occurred or continued	. 	
o 	For any subsequent offense, $100 for each employee or person whose rights under this 	Act or the 	
Living Wage A	ct are violated for each day the violation occurred or continued	. 	
The 	Mayor shall collect administrative penalties in the amounts set forth below for the following 	
violations:	 	
o 	Five hundred dollars for failure to provide 	notice of 	investigation to employees 	 	
o 	Five hundred dollars for failure to post 	notice of 	violation	s to the public	 	
Accrued 	Sick and Safe Leave Act or the Minimum Wage Revision Act.	 	
o 	No administrative penalty may be collected unless the Mayor has provided any person alleged to 
have violated any 	of the provisions of this section notification of the violation, notification of the 	
amount of the administrative penalty to be imposed, and an opportunity to request a formal 
hearing held pursuant to the District of Columbia Administrative Procedure Act, 	approved 	
October 21, 1968 (82 Stat 1203, D.C. Official Code § 2	-501 et seq)	.  	
o 	The Mayor shall issue a final order following the hearing, containing a finding that a violation has 
or has not occurred. If a hearing is not requested, the person to whom notifi	cation of violation 	
was provided shall transmit to the Mayor the amount of the penalty within 15 days following 
notification. 	 	
There  is  e	stablish	ed	 as  a  special  fund  the  Wage  Theft  Prevention  Fund  (“Fund”),  which  shall  be 	
administered  by  the  Department  of  Employment 	Services.  The  Fund  shall  be  used  to  enforce  the 	
provisions  of  this 	Act,  the Minimum  Wage  Revision Act,  the 	Accrued 	Sick  and Safe  Leave  Act,  and  the 	
Living  Wage  Act.    The  money  deposited  into  the  Fund,  and  interest  earned,  shall  not  revert  to  the

unrestricted fund balance of the General Fund of the District of Columbia at the end of a fiscal year, or at 
any other time.  
Minimum Wage Penalties D.C. Official Code § 32-1011 
o Any 
person who willfully or  negligently violates any of the provisions of  §32-1010 shall, upon 
conviction, be subject to a fine of  not m ore than $10,000, or to imprisonment  of not  more than six 
(6) mont hs, or both. o
No person shall be imprisoned under this section except for an offense committed willfully after
the conviction of that person for a prior offense under this section.
o Prosecutions for violations of this subchapter shall be in the Superior Court of the District of
Columbia and shall be conducted by the Attorney General of the District of Columbia.
o In addition to and apart from the penalties or remedies provided for in this section,	
 the Mayor
shall assess and collect administrative penalties as follows: 1. For the first violation, $50 for each employee or person whose rights under this Act are
violated for each day that the violation occurred or continued;
2. For any subsequent violation s, 	
$100 for each employee or person whose rights under this Act
are violated for each day that the violation occurred or continued;
3. $500 for each failure to maintain payroll records or to retain payroll records for three (3)
years or whatever the prevailing federal standard is, whichever is greater for each violation;
4. $500 for each failure to allow the Mayor to inspect payroll records or perform any other investigation;
5. $500 for each failure to provide each employee an itemized wage statement or the written
notice as required by section 9(b) and (c); and
6. $100 for each day that the employer fails to post notice as required under section 10(a).
ASSLA Penalties D.C. Official Code § 32-131.12 
An employer who willfully violates the requirements of this Act shall be subject to a civil penalty for each 
affected employee of $1,000 for the 1st offense, $1,500 for the 2nd offense, and $2,000 for the 3rd and 
each subsequent offense.  If the Mayor determines that an employer has violated any provision of this 
Act, the Mayor shall order the employer to provide affirmative remedies including:  compensatory 
damages, punitive damages, and additional damages as provided in the law. The administrative fines and 
penalties collected under this section shall be deposited in the Wage Theft Prevention Fund.  For the complete text of the Wage Theft Prevention Amendment Act of 2014, go to 
http://lims.dccouncil.us/Download/31203/B20-0671-SignedAct.pdf
.