Unlawful Deductions from Pay

Employers may not take unauthorized deductions from your wages. Moreover, employers are not permitted to compel an employee to cover costs or expenses incurred by the employer as a result of doing business. This generally includes items such as: Credit card processing fees, uniforms, broken items, customer “walk outs,” collecting portions of tips to supplement the income of either supervisory employees or employees who do not provide direct service to patrons or customers, offsetting rent from the wages of employees who live on the work premises beyond the amount permitted by law, among other numerous things.

If your employer either deducts directly from your pay or maintains a policy of otherwise collecting or receiving monies from you to cover a business-related cost, you may be entitled to penalties against your employer, interest, and reimbursement of reasonable attorney's fees and costs, in addition to the amounts unlawfully collected.

If you have complained about the legitimacy of such a policy and have suffered adverse consequences as a result, you may also have a claim of retaliation which may make available the following damages: Compensatory damages, emotional distress damages and punitive damages.