The state's Wage and Workplace Standards Division in the Connecticut Department of Labor investigates all wage complaints they receive from workers.
From 2018 through 2022, between 1,800 and 3,200 complaints were received from workers each year, reaching a total of 13,579. WWSD investigates every complaint they receive. In that same time period, 12,065 cases were closed, meaning the case reached a settlement or wages were recovered.
As of March 2023, there were 1,176 cases in various stages of investigation assigned to a staff of 24, creating a four- to six-month backlog, according to the state's Department of Labor in a workgroup document compiled by the Appropriations Committee this legislative session.
There were also almost 800 cases yet to be assigned to staff, which "is an extraordinarily high number that has continued to surge over the last 12-15 months," reads the department's response to the Appropriations Committee. "The number of pending claims on October 20, 2022 was 542, while that figure stood at 117 on October 21, 2020."
Anthony Soto, a wage enforcement agent at the Connecticut Department of Labor and vice president at Local 269 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees labor union, also attributes the backlog to the increased number of wage complaints received every year.
The state labor department takes in wage claims similar to the federal department but expands the range of claims to include any non-payment of wages such as not receiving a paycheck, bonuses or commission, and one can only recover wages for up to two years from the moment a claim is filed, regardless of the employer's intention.
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