A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 40.1-28.12, 40.1-29, and 40.1-29.1 of the Code of Virginia and to repeal § 40.1-28.11 of the Code of Virginia, relating to Virginia Minimum Wage Act; enforcement; penalties.
HB948 revises Virginia’s wage-payment and minimum-wage enforcement laws. It amends the Virginia Minimum Wage Act and related wage-payment provisions to strengthen remedies for employees who are not paid properly, including unpaid wages, interest, liquidated damages, attorney’s fees, and in some cases treble damages. The bill also expands and clarifies enforcement tools available to the Commissioner of Labor and Industry, including the ability to investigate broader patterns of nonpayment, bring proceedings on behalf of employees, and use private counsel to collect amounts owed after final orders or judgments.
The bill also updates the rules governing how wages must be paid and documented. It preserves existing requirements for regular pay periods, permissible payment methods, wage deductions, and pay statements, while maintaining special rules for certain employees and agricultural employers. It increases criminal and civil consequences for willful or knowing nonpayment of wages, including misdemeanor and felony penalties tied to the amount unpaid, and a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per violation. It also repeals § 40.1-28.11, which is part of the current wage-law framework, and makes conforming changes to related enforcement sections.
HB948 would materially expand enforcement and penalty provisions under Virginia wage law, especially for violations of the Virginia Minimum Wage Act and wage-payment requirements in § 40.1-29. It would give employees stronger private rights of action, authorize collective actions, and increase the financial exposure of employers through liquidated damages, interest, attorney’s fees, and enhanced damages for knowing violations. It also broadens the Commissioner’s authority to investigate related wage violations affecting other employees and to pursue collection more aggressively, while repealing one existing code section and revising several others in Title 40.1.
The bill appears to be generally supportive of stronger worker wage protections, as reflected by its introduction by multiple patrons and its focus on enforcement and penalties for nonpayment. However, there is no recorded committee transcript or vote history in the provided materials, and the bill was left in the Labor and Commerce committee, so there is no direct evidence of floor-level support or opposition. The available record suggests the measure was treated as a labor-enforcement proposal rather than a broadly contested policy change.
The main points of contention likely concern the bill’s tougher penalties and expanded enforcement authority. Employers may object to the increased civil exposure, the possibility of treble damages for knowing violations, the use of private counsel for collections, and the broader investigative reach of the Commissioner without a new employee complaint in some cases. Worker advocates, by contrast, would likely support the bill’s stronger remedies and enforcement mechanisms as necessary to deter wage theft and improve compliance. The bill’s note about a possible increase in imprisonment also signals that criminal enforcement consequences are part of the policy change.