Imagine working 40 hours a week, counting on your paycheck to cover rent and groceries, only for it not to show up on time. In 2024, Massachusetts employers were fined over $5.1 million solely for late wage payments-enough to cover nearly 1,800 months of rent (at $2,833/month) or a year’s groceries for almost 600 families (averaging $8,561 annually).
This figure exposes a systemic issue that disproportionately impacts low-wage workers who rely on paychecks. In Fiscal Year 2024 alone, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Fair Labor Division issued 487 citations for delayed payments, marking it as the state’s most frequent wage theft violation. This underscores the urgent need for stronger worker protection laws and more effective enforcement strategies to ensure that employees receive timely compensation.
Delayed payments are a distinct form of wage theft, which includes violations like unpaid overtime and misclassification of employees, according to Policy Matters Ohio. Specifically, delayed payments occur when employers fail to pay workers on time, and even if the full amount is eventually provided.
The COVID-19 pandemic magnified this issue. As business closures and layoffs surged, millions of workers were left vulnerable to wage violations. The national unemployment rate skyrocketed to 14.7% in April 2020, up from 3.6% pre-pandemic, and industries like hospitality and retail—already prone to wage theft—were hit hardest. Nationally, over $3 billion in stolen wages were recovered between 2017 and 2020, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
Massachusetts law is clear: under the Massachusetts Wage Act, employers must pay employees within six days of the end of a pay period and provide all earned wages immediately upon involuntary termination. In 2022, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court reinforced this standard, mandating treble damages for any delayed wage payments, regardless of when the owed wages are eventually paid.
Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell has stepped up enforcement, imposing millions in fines and hosting free wage theft clinics. Yet, according to the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, the Attorney General’s office is only able to address about 1% of the stolen wages in Massachusetts, leaving the vast majority of affected workers uncompensated.
Recognizing the limitations of current enforcement efforts, lawmakers are actively working to strengthen the Attorney General’s authority. Bill H 1868 / S 1158, currently under pending concurrence, aims to expand the tools available for addressing wage theft and delayed payments.
Some employers argue that wage delays stem from administrative errors or cash flow issues. One worker shared on an employment forum, “My employer says the clients haven’t paid yet, so the company doesn’t have money for payroll”. However, courts have consistently upheld that workers shouldn’t bear the burden of their employer’s financial instability.
The $5.1 million in fines isn’t just a number—it’s a warning sign of a larger, persistent issue. Without stronger protections and more aggressive enforcement, wage theft will continue to destabilize the financial lives of thousands of workers whose life depend on timely paychecks.