Is it illegal for our employer to continuously pay us late?
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Is it illegal for our employer to continuously pay us late?
I’m seeking legal advice for a company I work for and they have a problem with
consistently paying us late. In the 4 months I’ve been there they’ve payed on
time once. We waited the longest up to 7 days 5 business days to be paid.
Workers have told me they have went times where they weren’t paid for a whole month. However, the company continuously expect us to show up to work when we can’t even get to work due to not having money for gas, etc. My family has been put on the street twice since I started working here. The owner of the company comes up with excuses saying he’s waiting for someone’s check. There was recently a hurricane and my pay day was several days before it. Yet, he used it as an excuse that the hurricane is causing a delay on our pays.
Asked on October 9, 2018 under Employment Labor Law, Hawaii
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 5 years ago | Contributor
It's not legal but there is not much you can do about it, so long as you do get paid, even if late: that's because were to take legal action, the fact that they pay you before the case/action could possibly get heard means that it would be "moot," or irrelevant, when heard. That's because all you can get is what you are owed, and so if the settle up before a legal matter comes up, there is nothing to take action for. They are not responsible for the fact that your family appears to not have a "rainy day" fund or savings, or that you appear to live paycheck-to-paycheck: they do not set or control your spending or savings levels. Really, all you can do is look for a better, more considerate and stable job.
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