50-State Surveys › Employee Wage Deduction Requirements by State
Employee Wage Deduction Requirements by State
When may an employer deduct money from an employee's wages, what authorization or notice is required, and what deductions are prohibited?
51 of 51 jurisdictions verified
every entry statute-checked, oldest 2026-07-13
What this survey covers
A signed payroll form does not always make a deduction lawful. Some states ask only whether the employee authorized a lawful purpose; others limit voluntary deductions to listed employee benefits, impose detailed notice and revocation rules, or create separate procedures for shortages and overpayments. This survey compares those state-law limits for deductions from earned wages.
Taxes, court-ordered withholding, garnishment, and child support appear only as law-created exceptions. Their separate amounts and procedures are outside this survey, as are pay-stub contents, expense reimbursement, and payment-method rules.
How to read the table
Start with coverage and the source of authority. The next columns distinguish a deduction imposed by law from one the employee chooses, then show whether the chosen purpose is itself permitted. Employer-loss and overpayment columns track the most common self-help traps: a state may allow benefit deductions but still bar payroll recovery for damaged equipment, or may permit overpayment recovery only through a notice and dispute process.
The notice-and-wage-floor column answers when authorization may be withdrawn, what records must be kept, and how far a deduction may reduce pay. The final column identifies the remedy that actually reaches a deduction violation.
Patterns across the states
The largest divide is between states that use a closed list of permitted purposes and states that begin with a broader written-authorization rule. New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Kansas, and Wyoming enumerate lawful categories. Virginia, Michigan, Texas, Illinois, Idaho, New Mexico, Nebraska, North Carolina, and North Dakota generally place more weight on a purpose- specific writing. California, Washington, Maine, Montana, and Vermont instead make the employee-benefit or anti-kickback character of the deduction central. Several other states have only a contract, final-pay, or industry-specific rule, so a payroll form cannot be assumed to create authority that the state scheme does not supply.
Employer losses produce the sharpest practical differences. Some states categorically bar deductions for shortages, breakage, or claimed damages; others require employee fault, a fresh authorization, advance notice, sole access to cash, or a final-pay procedure. Wyoming requires judicial findings for negligence, theft, or fraud and a four-part cash-shortage process. Vermont bars claimed-damage and register-shortage deductions, while Alaska and North Dakota require unusually specific writings tied to the loss itself. A general handbook acknowledgment is therefore least reliable in the very situations where an employer is most tempted to use payroll self-help.
Overpayment recovery is not one uniform category. New York supplies a detailed notice and dispute system. Michigan permits limited no-consent recovery; New Hampshire uses a percentage cap by agreement; Maine has a small periodic cap and lookback; and North Carolina treats qualifying overpayments, advances, and loan principal as wage prepayments. Many states create no special clerical- overpayment route at all, which is different from affirmatively authorizing an automatic deduction.
The last comparison point is what remains after the deduction. Some statutes expressly preserve minimum wage, overtime, or a percentage of disposable pay; others state no deduction-specific floor even though federal wage law may still control. Itemized statements, revocation rights, agency wage claims, interest, multiplier damages, civil penalties, and attorney-fee rules also vary independently. That is why a lawful purpose, valid authorization, correct procedure, wage floor, and remedy must be checked as separate questions.
Get this answered for your state
This survey compares every state side by side. Ezel applies your state's law to your specific situation and answers with citations to the statutes.
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| State | Governing law and coverage | Deductions required or authorized by law | Voluntary authorization requirements | Employee-benefit and purchase deductions | Employer losses, shortages, and property | Overpayments, advances, and employer loans | Notice, revocation, records, and wage floor | Enforcement and remedies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama verified 2026-07-13 | No general Alabama state wage-and-hour or private-sector wage-deduction statute; the Alabama Department of Labor says Alabama has no state laws governing wage-and-hour issues and identifies deductions as a federal Wage and Hour Division topic |
No general Alabama deduction statute creates or restates a law-required-withholding exception; taxes, support, garnishment, and other subject-specific withholdings operate under their separate laws and are outside this survey |
No general Alabama state signature, written-consent, electronic-authorization, reason, amount, percentage, frequency, or timing requirement for an ordinary private-sector wage deduction |
No general Alabama state list of permitted private-sector insurance, retirement, dues, charity, meal, lodging, merchandise, or other employee-benefit deductions |
No general Alabama state payroll-deduction rule for uniforms, tools, cash or inventory shortages, breakage, damage, theft, customer nonpayment, or unreturned property; Alabama supplies no deduction-specific fault, notice, valuation, or criminal-process route |
No general Alabama state payroll-recovery procedure for wage overpayments, advances, or employer loans; no state lookback, periodic cap, notice, dispute process, principal-only rule, or final-paycheck exception in this scope |
No general Alabama state advance-notice, revocation, authorization-retention, itemization, or deduction-specific wage-floor rule; the Alabama Department of Labor directs wage-and-hour deduction questions to federal guidelines |
No Alabama deduction-specific agency wage claim, repayment multiplier, civil penalty, attorney-fee provision, or state limitations period under a general wage-deduction law; the Alabama Department of Labor directs these wage-and-hour matters to the U.S. Wage and Hour Division |
| Alaska verified 2026-07-13 | 8 AAC 15.160 is the general private-sector deduction rule under the Alaska Wage and Hour Act; it covers employer debts, employee-benefit payments, transportation, board/lodging, and uniform/equipment deposits |
Not enumerated in 8 AAC 15.160; taxes, legal process, and other law-created withholding operate under their own laws. Pay statements separately identify federal tax, FICA, and Alaska Employment Security Act deductions (§ 15.160(h)) |
Employer debt: written agreement. Employee-benefit payment to a creditor, donee, or third party: written agreement signed by the employee and employer may take no profit or benefit (§ 15.160(a)-(b)); special written terms apply to transportation, board/lodging, and deposits |
Signed written direction may pay a creditor or other third party for the employee's benefit, with no employer profit (§ 15.160(b)). Board/lodging needs prior written description, weekly amount, voluntariness notice, and signed acceptance (§ 15.160(d)) |
Bad checks and customer theft/credit defaults are barred. Shortages or missing property require a willing written admission that the employee personally took the specific cash/property; damage/breakage requires clear willful conduct plus written responsibility (§ 15.160(a)(1)-(5)) |
No special overpayment, advance, or loan-recovery procedure in § 15.160; advances must appear on the pay statement (§ 15.160(h)(11)). An employer-debt recovery uses the general written agreement and remains subject to the wage floor and prohibited-loss rules |
No general revocation or retention rule. Each pay period requires a written/electronic earnings-and-deductions statement (§ 15.160(h)). Employer-benefit deductions may not reduce the $14.00 minimum wage effective July 1, 2026, or required overtime; special categories repeat that floor |
DOLWD may take assignment of a wage claim up to the $20,000 small-claim ceiling (AS §§ 23.05.220, 22.15.040). A deduction causing a minimum-wage/overtime shortfall supports unpaid wages plus an equal liquidated amount and attorney fees (§ 23.10.110), subject to a 2-year limit (§ 23.10.130) |
| Arizona verified 2026-07-13 | Arizona Revised Statutes Title 23, Chapter 2, Article 7; the deduction rule is A.R.S. § 23-352 (Withholding of wages), with definitions in § 23-350 and remedies in §§ 23-355 (treble-damages civil action) and 23-356 (administrative wage claim). Administered by the Labor Department of the Industrial Commission of Arizona. 'Employer' includes public employers, and 'wages' is nondiscretionary compensation the employee reasonably expects to be paid (§ 23-350). The rule is general, not limited by employer size or industry |
Permitted when 'the employer is required or empowered to do so by state or federal law' (§ 23-352(1)): taxes, court-ordered garnishment, and child support. No separate employee authorization is needed for these |
Any other deduction needs 'prior written authorization from the employee' (§ 23-352(2)). The statute requires the authorization be prior and written but does not itself prescribe its content. An employee may revoke it in writing, and the employer 'shall not withhold wages under a written authorization ... past the date specified by the employee in a written revocation,' except where the withholding is to resolve a debt or obligation to the employer or a court orders otherwise (§ 23-352(2)) |
No statutory list of permitted categories. Insurance premiums, retirement contributions, union dues, savings plans, charitable gifts, purchases, and similar voluntary items are all permitted on the same footing: lawful if the employee gave prior written authorization (§ 23-352(2)). The purpose is limited by general law, not by an enumerated catalog |
No special shortage, breakage, damage, or unreturned-property provision. Such a deduction is lawful only if the employee gave prior written authorization (§ 23-352(2)) or it falls under the good-faith-dispute path: an employer may withhold where there is 'a reasonable good faith dispute as to the amount of wages due, including the amount of any counterclaim or any claim of debt, reimbursement, recoupment or set-off asserted by the employer against the employee' (§ 23-352(3)). A genuine, reasonable claim for a loss can support withholding, but a bad-faith or unreasonable withholding is a violation exposing the employer to treble damages |
No special overpayment/advance/loan statute. Recovery requires prior written authorization (§ 23-352(2)); notably, a revocation of that authorization does not stop a withholding that is 'to resolve a debt or obligation to the employer' (§ 23-352(2)). An overpayment, advance, or loan claim can also be a 'claim of debt, reimbursement, recoupment or set-off' handled under the good-faith-dispute provision (§ 23-352(3)). The statute sets no lookback, percentage cap, or notice schedule |
Revocation: an employee may revoke a written authorization in writing, and the employer must stop withholding after the revocation date: except to resolve a debt or obligation to the employer or under a court order (§ 23-352(2)). Section 23-352 sets no separate advance-notice, records, or wage-floor rule specific to deductions; Arizona's minimum-wage law applies independently. The good-faith-dispute path (§ 23-352(3)) is the main practical limit on employer-claim withholdings |
An employee may sue for treble the unpaid wages: if an employer 'in violation of this chapter, fails to pay wages due,' the employee may recover 'an amount that is treble the amount of the unpaid wages' (§ 23-355). Because a reasonable good-faith dispute under § 23-352(3) means no violation, treble damages turn on whether the withholding was made in good faith. Alternatively, an employee may file an administrative wage claim with the Labor Department for wages not exceeding $12,000, within one year of accrual (§ 23-356) |
| Arkansas verified 2026-07-13 | No general private-sector wage-deduction statute. The only binding limit is Arkansas Minimum Wage Act rule 11 CAR § 11-702, which restricts deductions only insofar as they would cut pay below the state minimum wage (§ 11-4-210, currently $11.00/hr) or overtime (§ 11-4-211). The Act covers employers with four or more employees (§ 11-4-203(4)); 'wage' is defined as compensation subject to deductions permitted by the Act or the director's rules (§ 11-4-203(9)) |
11 CAR § 11-702(a)(2) permits deductions 'authorized or required by law' — taxes, court-ordered garnishment, child-support withholding, bankruptcy orders — even below the minimum wage. Those regimes have their own separate laws and are not resurveyed here. The rule states no separate collective-bargaining category |
For a deduction that would reduce pay below the minimum or overtime wage, 11 CAR § 11-702(a)(3) allows it only if it is not otherwise prohibited, is 'for the employee's benefit,' and is 'authorized by the employee in writing.' The rule sets no timing, specificity, amount, or revocation requirement. Above the minimum-wage floor no state authorization rule applies; a lawful agreed deduction is a matter of contract |
No enumerated statutory list of permitted benefit deductions. The only filter is 11 CAR § 11-702(a)(3)'s twin test — the deduction must be 'for the employee's benefit' and authorized in writing — and it applies only to deductions reaching below the wage floor. Insurance, retirement, dues, charity, and similar items qualify only if they meet that benefit-and-writing standard; consent alone does not authorize a deduction that is 'otherwise prohibited' |
11 CAR § 11-702(b) bars deductions 'from the applicable minimum wage rate' for spoilage or breakage; cash or inventory shortages or losses; and fines or penalties for lateness, misconduct, or quitting without notice. The bar operates at the wage floor: such deductions may never bring pay below the minimum or overtime wage. No statute addresses uniforms, tools, or unreturned property beyond the Act's separate board/lodging/apparel allowance; above the floor, contract and common law govern |
No special statutory procedure for recovering overpayments, wage advances, or employer loans. A recovery that would drop pay below the minimum or overtime wage must fit an 11 CAR § 11-702(a) exception (authorized or required by law, or for the employee's benefit and authorized in writing); otherwise it is barred at the floor. Above the floor there is no lookback, cap, notice, or dispute procedure in statute — an agreed repayment is governed by contract |
The operative floor is the state minimum wage ($11.00/hr, § 11-4-210) and overtime at one and one-half times the regular rate (§ 11-4-211); deductions may not cut pay below it except as 11 CAR § 11-702(a) allows. No statutory advance-notice or revocation right attaches to an authorization. Employers must keep pay records, including the amount paid each pay period, for at least three years (§ 11-4-217(a)) |
In a wage dispute the Director of the Division of Labor may 'allow or reject any deduction from wages' (§ 11-4-303). A deduction that pays an employee less than the minimum or overtime wage triggers § 11-4-218: liability for the full unpaid wages, costs, and reasonable attorney's fees, plus up to an equal amount as liquidated damages if the employee proves the violation was willful. An employee may sue without exhausting agency remedies, with a two-year limitations period. A late final paycheck can add § 11-4-405's double-wages penalty |
| California verified 2026-07-13 | Cal. Lab. Code §§ 221, 224, 225.5; §§ 98, 218 remedies. IWC Wage Order 4-2001 §§ 1, 8-9 adds occupation-specific loss, uniform, and tool rules |
Allowed when the employer is required or empowered by state or federal law; qualifying health, welfare, or pension contributions may also be authorized by a collective-bargaining or wage agreement (§ 224) |
Must be expressly authorized in writing by the employee; § 224 does not state a separate signature, amount, frequency, electronic-form, or advance-notice formula |
Insurance premiums, hospital or medical dues, and other written-authorized deductions that do not rebate the collective-bargaining, agreed, or statutory wage; qualifying health/welfare/pension contributions under a CBA or wage agreement (§ 224) |
For Wage Order 4 employees, no wage deduction or reimbursement for cash shortage, breakage, or equipment loss unless caused by dishonesty, willfulness, or gross negligence. Required uniforms/tools generally employer-provided; final-check cost for an unreturned item needs prior written authorization; never normal wear (§§ 8-9) |
The cited general provisions create no separate overpayment, advance, or employer-loan schedule; §§ 221/224 recognize deductions required/empowered by law and the written-authorized categories § 224 describes |
Sections 221/224 state no standalone revocation deadline or authorization-retention period. Authorization must be express and written, and cannot amount to a rebate or deduction from the collective-bargaining, agreed, or statutory wage (§ 224) |
Labor Commissioner wage/penalty hearing (§ 98) or direct wage-claimant suit (§ 218). Separate § 225.5 state civil penalty: $100 per employee initially; $200 plus 25% withheld for a later or willful/intentional violation |
| Colorado verified 2026-07-13 | Colorado Wage Act, C.R.S. §§ 8-4-101 and 8-4-105. The five-category payroll-deduction rule covers private-sector employees performing labor or services for an employer; true independent contractors and listed state/local public bodies are excluded. SB 26-160 amended § 8-4-105 effective June 3, 2026 |
Permitted when mandated by or made in accordance with local, state, or federal law, including taxes, FICA, garnishments, and other court orders (§ 8-4-105(1)(a)); also permits contributions attributable to automatic enrollment in an employee retirement plan ((1)(a.5)) |
For employer-provided loans, advances, goods, services, equipment, property, or another item primarily benefiting the employee: an enforceable, lawful written agreement (§ 8-4-105(1)(b)); CDLE says material terms include amount, frequency, and duration. Other voluntary deductions under (1)(d) must be authorized and revocable, but that paragraph does not itself require writing |
Revocable authorization may cover hospitalization/medical and other insurance, savings plans, stock purchases, supplemental retirement, charities, and financial-institution deposits (§ 8-4-105(1)(d)). Written-agreement deductions under (1)(b) must primarily benefit the employee; employer business costs do not qualify |
No deduction for poor work, lost sales, damage, ordinary business costs, or defined personal protective equipment, even by agreement. Suspected theft requires a police report and criminal-process safeguards (§ 8-4-105(1)(c)). At separation, entrusted money/property not returned may be deducted only after a 10-day audit and detailed notice, with a 14-day return-and-refund procedure ((1)(e)) |
Loans, advances, and accidental wage overpayments use § 8-4-105(1)(b): enforceable lawful written agreement, primarily employee benefit, and current minimum-wage floor. CDLE says an overpayment notice should state amount and manner, apply to later-period wages, and be followed by express agreement or continued work in the deduction period |
Paragraph (1)(d) authorization must be revocable. Final-pay property deduction requires audit and detailed written notice within 10 calendar days; timely return triggers refund within 14 days. Since SB 26-160, § 8-4-105(2) preserves the applicable minimum wage for (1)(b), (c), and (e), but excepts deductions under (1)(a), (a.5), and (d). Pay statements must itemize deductions, and records are retained at least 3 years |
Unauthorized deduction is unpaid wages. After 14-day written demand/claim/service, § 8-4-109(3)(b) adds greater of 2x unpaid wages or $1,000; willful violation: greater of 3x or $3,000. Court may award fees/costs if employee recovers more than tendered (§ 8-4-110). Theft-specific bad faith allows up to treble wrongfully withheld plus fees/costs (§ 8-4-105(1)(c)); general limitation is 2 years, 3 if willful (§ 8-4-122) |
| Connecticut verified 2026-07-13 | Connecticut Payment of Wages Act, Conn. Gen. Stat. ch. 558 (§§ 31-71a to 31-72); the operative deduction rule is § 31-71e. 'Employer' is defined broadly to include the state and its political subdivisions, 'employee' as 'any person suffered or permitted to work,' and 'wages' as compensation for labor or services (§ 31-71a). Enforcement and the double-damages remedy are in § 31-72 |
Without any authorization form, an employer may withhold only where 'required or empowered to do so by state or federal law' (§ 31-71e(1)) — income tax, FICA, and lawful wage executions — plus automatic-enrollment retirement-plan contributions (§ 31-71e(4)) and another state's income tax for cross-border employees (§ 31-71e(5)) |
Any other deduction requires 'written authorization from the employee for deductions on a form approved by the commissioner' (§ 31-71e(2)). A separate path allows written authorization for 'medical, surgical or hospital care or service, without financial benefit to the employer and recorded in the employer's wage record book' (§ 31-71e(3)). A handbook clause, email 'agreement,' or general policy is not a commissioner-approved authorization form |
Connecticut does not enumerate benefit categories such as uniforms, meals, dues, or charity. It channels voluntary deductions through the § 31-71e(2) commissioner-approved-form route, with specific statutory paths only for medical, surgical, or hospital care (§ 31-71e(3)) and automatic-enrollment retirement plans under IRC 401(k), 403(b), 408, 408A, or 457 or the Connecticut Retirement Security Program (§ 31-71e(4)) |
No statutory self-help for cash or inventory shortages, breakage, damage, theft, uniforms, or unreturned property. Such a deduction is lawful only if it fits one of § 31-71e's five paths — in practice only path (2), a written authorization on a form approved by the Labor Commissioner. The Act states no employee-fault test, valuation rule, or criminal-charge exception |
No special recovery procedure. Recovering an overpayment, wage advance, or employer loan is a withholding of wages and must fit § 31-71e, in practice the commissioner-approved authorization form of § 31-71e(2). Section 31-72 adds that 'any agreement between an employee and his or her employer for payment of wages other than as specified in said sections shall be no defense,' so a private repayment agreement does not override the deduction statute |
At hiring the employer must 'advise his employees in writing ... of the rate of remuneration, hours of employment and wage payment schedules,' and make wage, vacation, sick-leave, health, and comparable benefit policies (or changes) available in writing or by posted notice (§ 31-71f). The Act states no employee revocation right and no deduction-specific wage floor; Connecticut's minimum wage law and federal law set the general floor |
An employee may sue and recover 'twice the full amount of such wages, with costs and such reasonable attorney's fees,' unless the employer proves 'a good faith belief that the underpayment of wages was in compliance with law,' in which case recovery is the full amount plus costs and fees (§ 31-72). A private wage agreement is no defense. The Labor Commissioner may collect the unpaid wages with interest and may sue for double damages (§ 31-72). A violation is also a class D felony, or a graduated fine or imprisonment scaled to the amount owed (§ 31-71g). Actions are subject to the limitation period the chapter cross-references at § 52-596 |
| Delaware verified 2026-07-13 | 19 Del. C. ch. 11, especially § 1107, plus 19 DE Admin. Code 1328. Covers private-sector employees working in Delaware; excludes federal, state/local-government, and independent-contractor work (§ 1101(a)) |
Allowed when the employer is required or empowered to deduct by state or federal law (§ 1107(1)) |
Employee must sign an authorization for a lawful purpose benefiting the employee (§ 1107(3)). Cash advances and employer-provided goods/services need a writing signed by both sides stating amount/value, repayment schedule, and method (Reg. 1328) |
Medical, surgical, or hospital care/service is allowed without a signed authorization if the employer receives no financial benefit and records it openly and clearly (§ 1107(2)); other voluntary deductions must be lawful and benefit the employee (§ 1107(3)) |
No deductions for cash/inventory shortages or employer/customer property damage, even by agreement. Final compensation may not be held while awaiting returned property; a separate property deposit may be deducted only with written consent (Reg. 1328) |
No special automatic overpayment route stated. Cash advances and charges for goods/services require a joint signed agreement; installments may not exceed 15% of gross wages per pay period, with a final-pay exception only if the original agreement included it (Reg. 1328) |
No general advance-notice, revocation, or authorization-retention rule stated in § 1107 or Reg. 1328. Accepting disputed wages is not evidence of consent; the 15%-of-gross cap applies to agreed advance/goods repayment |
Employee may bring a civil action for unpaid wages and liquidated damages (§ 1113(a)); the Department of Labor administers and enforces the chapter and regulation |
| District of Columbia verified 2026-07-13 | D.C. Wage Payment and Collection Law, §§ 32-1301 to -1312, broadly covers private employers and employees; 7 DCMR ch. 9 adds minimum-wage, meal/lodging, uniform, tool, and record rules. U.S./DC governments and Railway Labor Act employers are excluded (§ 32-1301) |
The current minimum-wage notice recognizes deductions specifically authorized by law or court order; taxes, support, garnishment, and similar regimes follow their separate laws. The general wage statute supplies no further automatic-deduction list |
No universal signed-authorization formula in the cited general law or ch. 9. A deduction must be lawful, all earned wages must be paid unconditionally, and ordinary deductions cannot reduce covered pay below the minimum wage (§§ 32-1301, 32-1302; 7 DCMR § 902.2) |
No closed general list for insurance, retirement, dues, charity, or purchases. Specific wage credits allow lodging up to 80% of comparable rental value and meals up to $2.12 each, with meal-count and $6.36 live-in daily limits (7 DCMR § 904) |
DOES says company-equipment damage may not be deducted. Required uniforms/protective clothing and required tools are employer costs in addition to wages (7 DCMR §§ 908.1, 910.1). A disputed employer claim does not excuse payment of wages the employer concedes are due (§ 32-1304) |
No separate overpayment, advance, or employer-loan payroll schedule in the cited general provisions. If the amount of wages is disputed, the employer must give written notice and unconditionally pay the conceded amount; accepting it does not release the balance (§ 32-1304) |
Each payday statement must itemize deductions/additions and net wages; underlying records are kept at least 3 years (§ 32-1008). No general revocation timetable appears in the cited provisions. Current non-tipped minimum: $18.40/hour from July 1, 2026; only law- or court-authorized deductions may take covered pay below the Act's floor |
Private civil action for unlawfully withheld back wages, treble liquidated damages, statutory penalties, fees/costs, and appropriate relief (§ 32-1308). Administrative earned-wage complaint generally within 3 years (§ 32-1308.01); separate daily administrative and criminal penalties may apply (§ 32-1307) |
| Florida verified 2026-07-13 | No general wage-deduction statute for ordinary private employees. Fla. Stat. ch. 448 (General Labor Regulations), Part I (§§ 448.01-448.111), has no provision authorizing or limiting deductions from an ordinary employee's pay; a deduction rests on contract and the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. The only Florida deduction rule is industry-limited to day-labor pools (Labor Pool Act, §§ 448.20-448.26) |
No Florida statute addresses law-required deductions for ordinary employees; tax, garnishment, and support withholding run under their own separate laws. Within the day-labor niche, § 448.24(2)(d) recognizes deductions authorized by federal or state law |
Florida law prescribes no written-authorization form, timing, or content for ordinary employees; a voluntary deduction rests on the parties' agreement. The Labor Pool Act sets no signed-authorization formula either: it caps and forbids specific charges instead |
No enumerated benefit-deduction list; permitted voluntary deductions are a matter of contract, subject to the wage floor. The Labor Pool Act instead prohibits charging day laborers for safety equipment, clothing, or items required by the work (§ 448.24(1)(a)) |
No Florida statute on uniforms, tools, cash shortages, breakage, damage, or theft for ordinary employees; these turn on contract and the minimum-wage floor. For day laborers, § 448.24(1)(a) bars charging for required safety equipment, clothing, or work items: except the market value of temporarily-provided items a worker willfully fails to return |
No Florida statute creates an overpayment, advance, or loan recovery route; recovery is a contract or civil-court matter, not a guaranteed payroll self-help right. The Labor Pool Act adds no special overpayment schedule |
No general statutory notice, revocation, or record-retention rule for ordinary employees. The operative floor is the federal FLSA minimum wage and Florida's constitutional minimum wage (Fla. Const. art. X § 24, implemented by § 448.110; § 448.109 defines it). Day-labor deductions may not drop pay below minimum wage (§ 448.24(2)(d)), and each day-labor payment needs an itemized deduction statement (§ 448.24(2)(g)) |
No deduction-specific state agency remedy for ordinary employees; an improper deduction is pursued as unpaid wages, with § 448.08 allowing the prevailing party costs and a reasonable attorney's fee, plus the constitutional minimum-wage civil action for a sub-minimum result. Day laborers have the Labor Pool Act's exclusive civil remedy: actual and consequential damages or $1,000 per violation, whichever is greater, after a 60-day cure notice, filed within one year (§ 448.25) |
| Georgia verified 2026-07-13 | No general wage-deduction statute. Payment framework in O.C.G.A. § 34-7-2 (manner and timing; employer must pay the 'full net amount of wages or earnings due'). The only deduction-specific rule is the labor-organization dues checkoff (§§ 34-6-25, 34-6-26). Section 34-7-2 covers wageworkers in manual, mechanical, or clerical labor, excluding salaried officials/department heads and the farming, sawmill, and turpentine industries |
Georgia's code does not enumerate law-required deductions in a wage-deduction statute; § 34-7-2 assumes the employer pays the 'full net amount' due. Taxes, garnishment, and support withholding operate under their own separate laws |
No general statute prescribes how an employee authorizes a voluntary deduction. The one statutory rule is narrow: a labor-organization dues deduction requires 'the written authorization of the employee,' revocable 'at any time' (§§ 34-6-25(a), 34-6-26). Any other voluntary deduction rests on the employment agreement |
No statute lists permitted employee-benefit deductions. Only labor-organization fees are specifically addressed, and only to require written, revocable authorization (§ 34-6-25(a)). Insurance, retirement, and similar benefit deductions are governed by the parties' agreement, not a Georgia deduction statute |
No Georgia statute addresses deductions for cash or inventory shortages, breakage, damage, theft, uniforms, tools, or unreturned property. Whether such a deduction is lawful turns on the employment agreement and the federal minimum-wage floor: Georgia sets no fault standard, consent rule, or cap |
No Georgia statute creates a special route, or a special bar, for recovering overpayments, wage advances, or employer loans. Recovery depends on the parties' agreement and ordinary contract law; there is no statutory lookback, periodic cap, or notice requirement |
No general statutory notice, revocation, or record-retention rule; the only statutory revocation right is for union-dues authorizations, revocable 'at any time' (§ 34-6-25(a)). Georgia sets no state wage floor for deductions: the federal FLSA minimum wage is the operative floor. Section 34-7-2 requires paying the 'full net amount of wages or earnings due' on the scheduled paydays |
No state administrative wage-claim agency handles ordinary private wage disputes; an employee's remedy for an unlawful deduction is generally a civil breach-of-contract action. A violation of the labor-organization dues-deduction rules (§§ 34-6-25, 34-6-26) is a misdemeanor (§ 34-6-27) |
| Hawaii verified 2026-07-13 | Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 388, especially §§ 388-1 and 388-6. Covers private employers; the State, its political subdivisions, and the United States are excluded. For § 388-6, wages include tips and gratuities |
Permitted when required by federal or state statute or by court process (§ 388-6). The separate tax, support, and garnishment rules are outside this survey |
Employee authorization must be in writing (§ 388-6). No amount, frequency, signature, electronic-form, or timing formula is stated, but the listed prohibited charges cannot be authorized and chapter rights generally cannot be waived by private agreement (§ 388-8) |
No exclusive benefit list. Insurance, retirement, union dues, purchases, and similar voluntary items use § 388-6's written-authorization route, provided the deduction is not one the section forbids |
Fines barred; shared-till shortages barred; sole-till shortages barred absent start/end accounting opportunity; breakage fines, penalties, and replacement costs barred. Bad-check losses barred if employee had discretion. Workmanship, property, customer-credit/default, and nonpayment losses barred unless attributable to willful or intentional disregard (§ 388-6) |
No special statutory recovery schedule for wage overpayments, advances, or employer loans. Payroll recovery therefore uses the ordinary § 388-6 written-authorization route unless another statute or court process requires it; no lookback, installment cap, or dispute procedure is stated |
Every payday record must show gross compensation, each deduction's amount and purpose, net compensation, date, and pay period; retain six years. Electronic record requires written employee authorization (§ 388-7). No general revocation procedure stated. Current minimum wage $16/hour; $18 on Jan. 1, 2028 (§ 387-2) |
Wage Standards Division investigates illegal-deduction complaints (§ 388-9). Employee may sue; qualifying agency assignment must be made within one year (§ 388-11). Employer owes unpaid wages plus an equal sum and 6% interest, plus a separate state penalty; fees/costs and criminal liability may apply (§§ 388-10 to -11) |
| Idaho verified 2026-07-13 | Idaho Wage Claim Act, Idaho Code Title 45, Chapter 6 (§§ 45-601 to 45-621); the operative deduction rule is § 45-609. An employer may withhold or divert wages only when 'required or empowered to do so by state or federal law' or under 'a written authorization from the employee for deductions for a lawful purpose.' The Act reaches any person 'suffered or permitted to work by an employer' (§ 45-601(4)); the wage floor is the Idaho Minimum Wage Law, Title 44, Chapter 15 |
Section 45-609(1)(a) permits a deduction when the employer 'is required or empowered to do so by state or federal law' — income-tax withholding, wage garnishment, child-support orders, and similar mandates. Those regimes are governed by their own separate laws outside this survey. No employee authorization is needed for a law-required or law-empowered deduction |
A voluntary deduction is lawful only under 'a written authorization from the employee for deductions for a lawful purpose' (§ 45-609(1)(b)). The authorization must be in writing, and the purpose must itself be lawful — a signature does not validate a deduction the law otherwise forbids. The statute prescribes no particular form, timing, per-item specificity, or revocation rule beyond the writing and the lawful-purpose limit |
No enumerated statutory list of benefit categories. Voluntary items — insurance premiums, retirement contributions, union dues, workplace purchases, and the like — are permitted through the § 45-609(1)(b) written-authorization-for-a-lawful-purpose route. The 'lawful purpose' qualifier, not a fixed benefit list, is the substantive limit on what a signed authorization can cover |
No special statute authorizes or bars deductions for cash or inventory shortages, breakage, damage, theft, or unreturned property. Such a charge is lawful only if a state or federal law empowers it or the employee gave written authorization for a lawful purpose (§ 45-609). A withholding without that authorization is unlawful; the Act states no fault standard, valuation step, or criminal-process exception, and a purely punitive charge may fail the lawful-purpose requirement even with a signature |
No special statutory procedure for recovering overpayments, wage advances, or employer loans. Recovery from wages is lawful only under a law that empowers it or the employee's written authorization for a lawful purpose (§ 45-609); otherwise it is an unlawful withholding. The Act sets no lookback, periodic cap, notice, or dispute mechanism, and no principal-only or interest rule |
For each pay period in which deductions are made, the employer must furnish the employee 'a statement of deductions made from the employee's wages,' and willful failure is a misdemeanor (§ 45-609(2)). The Act states no separate revocation right for an authorization. The wage floor is the Idaho minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, which 'shall conform to, and track with, the federal minimum wage' (§ 44-1502); Idaho has no state overtime law and bars local minimum wages above the state rate |
An unlawful withholding is a wage claim under the Act. The employee may file a claim with the Department of Labor or sue in court (§ 45-615) and, on a judgment, recover costs and reasonable attorney's fees plus 'either the unpaid wages plus the penalties provided for in section 45-607 ... or damages in the amount of three (3) times the unpaid wages found due and owing, whichever is greater.' The § 45-607 late-payment penalty is capped ($750, or $500 if paid before a lien). Willful failure to furnish the deduction statement is a misdemeanor (§ 45-609(2)) |
| Illinois verified 2026-07-13 | Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act, 820 ILCS 115/2, /9, /11, /14; 56 Ill. Admin. Code Part 300, Subpart D. The Act broadly defines employer, employee, wages, and final compensation; this cell addresses ordinary private-sector employment rather than § 9's special public-entity debt routes |
Section 9 permits deductions required by law and those made in response to a valid wage assignment or wage deduction order. Those gateways are separate from the employee-benefit and express-written-consent gateways |
Express written consent must be freely given when the deduction is made. A fixed recurring agreement for the same amount each pay period can supply contemporaneous consent for a defined term no longer than 6 months; a cash advance may be agreed when advanced, and its signed agreement must state amount, schedule, and repayment method (§§ 300.720, .750) |
Section 9 separately permits deductions 'to the benefit of the employee' but does not supply an exclusive benefit-category list. The employer bears the burden of proving that this or another § 9 exception applies (§ 300.710) |
No unilateral self-help. Cash/inventory shortages, damaged property, unreturned employer property, required uniforms, and required equipment may be deducted only with the employee's express written consent freely given when the particular deduction occurs (§§ 300.730, .820-.850); the same shortage rule covers a separate reimbursement demand |
Agreed overpayment discovered immediately may be deducted in full on the next regular payday; later discovery requires an agreed repayment schedule. A dispute triggers § 9's notice process. Cash-advance payroll repayment needs a signed amount/schedule/method agreement and ordinarily cannot exceed 15% of gross pay per check; a larger termination balance requires authority in the original advance agreement (§§ 300.750, .800-.810, .900) |
A defined recurring authorization lasts no more than 6 months. The cited provisions state no separate revocation or record-retention period. Subpart D cannot authorize a violation of the Illinois Minimum Wage Law or FLSA. For a disputed deduction, the employer must notify DOL by the pay due date; DOL gives the employee a contest opportunity (§§ 300.700, .720, .930) |
DOL wage complaint within 1 year after wages/final compensation/wage supplements were due, or a civil action, but not both. Recovery is the underpayment plus damages of 5% per month while unpaid; a civil action also carries costs and reasonable attorney's fees (§§ 11, 14(a)) |
| Indiana verified 2026-07-13 | Indiana Wage Deductions statute, Ind. Code ch. 22-2-6. Any direction an employee gives to deduct from future wages is a wage 'assignment' (§ 22-2-6-1), valid only if it meets the § 22-2-6-2 requisites and is for one of that section's enumerated purposes; overpayment recovery is handled separately (§ 22-2-6-4). Covers private employers and, by definition, the state and its political subdivisions (§ 22-2-6-1(b)); the pay remedy runs through the Wage Payment Statute, Ind. Code § 22-2-5-2 |
Taxes, court-ordered garnishment, and child support are not wage assignments and operate under their own laws. Section 22-2-6-2(b)(13) does let a wage assignment pay a judgment the employee owes 'in accordance with an agreement between the employee and the creditor,' but only if it 'is not a garnishment under IC 34-25-3', so a court garnishment sits outside the voluntary-assignment scheme |
A wage assignment is valid only if it is in writing, signed personally by the employee, revocable at any time by the employee on written notice, and agreed to in writing by the employer, with an executed copy delivered to the employer within 10 days, and made for an enumerated purpose (§ 22-2-6-2(a)). All of those conditions must be met; a general handbook sign-off, or a purpose not on the statutory list, does not qualify |
The permitted purposes are an exclusive statutory list (§ 22-2-6-2(b)): among them employer-obtained insurance premiums, charitable pledges, U.S. bonds, employer stock, union dues, employer-sold merchandise or food at the employee's written request, employer loans, hospital/medical/pension-plan contributions, credit unions, direct deposit, life insurance and annuities, mutual funds, and drug-treatment services. A deduction for a purpose not on the list is invalid even with a signed authorization |
There is no shortage, breakage, damage, theft, or cash-loss category on the list, so an employer generally cannot assign wages to cover those. Uniforms and job-related clothing (§ 22-2-6-2(b)(14)) and necessary equipment or tools ((b)(15)) are permitted, but only at the employer's direct external-vendor cost, only under a valid assignment, and capped in total at the lesser of $2,500 per year or 5% of weekly disposable earnings (§ 22-2-6-2(d)). Protective and personal protective equipment required by federal OSHA standards cannot be charged at all (§ 22-2-6-2(e)) |
Overpayments have their own rule: an employer may deduct an overpayment (which is neither a fine nor an assignment) but must give two weeks' notice, may not deduct an amount the employee disputes under IC 22-2-9-3, and is capped per week at the lesser of 25% of disposable earnings or the amount over 30 times the federal minimum wage: except a single overpayment equal to 10 times gross wages from a misplaced decimal, recoverable at once (§ 22-2-6-4). Payroll and vacation advances ((b)(17)) and employer loans ((b)(7)) are enumerated assignment purposes; loan interest is capped at the bank prime rate plus 4% (§ 22-2-6-2(c)), and loan repayment is subject to the same 25%/30x cap |
A wage assignment must be revocable at any time by the employee on written notice (§ 22-2-6-2(a)(1)(C)). An overpayment deduction requires two weeks' advance notice (§ 22-2-6-4(a)). The wage floor works through caps rather than a flat minimum: uniform and tool assignments are limited to $2,500 per year or 5% of disposable earnings (§ 22-2-6-2(d)), and overpayment and loan-repayment deductions cannot exceed the garnishment-style ceiling of 25% of disposable earnings or the amount above 30 times the federal minimum wage (§ 22-2-6-4(c)) |
An improper deduction leaves part of the 'amount due' unpaid, actionable under the Wage Payment Statute. Section 22-2-5-2 makes the employer liable for the unpaid wages, requires the court to award a reasonable attorney's fee and court costs, and, if the court finds the employer 'was not acting in good faith', adds liquidated damages equal to two times the wages due. Separated employees may instead pursue a wage claim under Ind. Code ch. 22-2-9 |
| Iowa verified 2026-07-13 | Iowa Wage Payment Collection Law, Iowa Code ch. 91A; the deduction rule is § 91A.5. 'Employee' means a natural person employed in Iowa for wages, including a commission salesperson but not an independent contractor or certain agricultural relatives (§ 91A.2(3)); 'employer' is defined in § 91A.2(4). Remedies are in §§ 91A.8 and 91A.10 |
An employer may withhold where 'required or permitted to do so by state or federal law or by order of a court of competent jurisdiction' (§ 91A.5(1)(a)) — income and payroll taxes, garnishment, and support withholding operate under their own laws |
The only other lawful route is 'written authorization from the employee to so deduct for any lawful purpose accruing to the benefit of the employee' (§ 91A.5(1)(b)). Two things must both be true: the authorization is in writing, and the purpose benefits the employee, not the employer. A signature does not authorize a deduction that mainly benefits the employer, and § 91A.5(2) separately forbids the common employer-loss deductions |
Iowa lists no benefit categories. The single test is § 91A.5(1)(b)'s written authorization 'for any lawful purpose accruing to the benefit of the employee,' which covers items such as insurance, retirement, or savings contributions the employee chooses; a purpose serving the employer's interest fails the test |
Section 91A.5(2) bars these outright: cash shortages from a till shared by two or more people (except one written agreement making a full-time manager responsible for shortages within the prior 45 days, one per establishment); dishonored checks where the employee had and did not abuse discretion to accept them; breakage, property damage, credit default, or customer nonpayment absent the employee's 'willful or intentional disregard of the employer's interests'; lost or stolen property unless it was equipment 'specifically assigned to, and receipt acknowledged in writing by,' the employee; gratuities; most personal protective equipment; and relocation costs over twenty dollars (for § 91E.1 employers) |
Chapter 91A creates no special overpayment, advance, or loan recovery procedure. A deduction from earned wages to recover one must still satisfy § 91A.5(1)(b)'s written authorization for a purpose benefiting the employee, and the § 91A.5(2) prohibitions still apply, so an employer cannot route a property-damage or shortage loss through an 'advance' or escrow deduction from wages |
On each regular payday the employer must give a statement showing hours worked, wages earned, and deductions made (§ 91A.6(4)). After the director notifies an employer following a prior paid claim or civil penalty, § 91A.6(1) adds duties to give hiring notice of wages and paydays, at least one pay period's notice before a change reducing wages, a written policy statement on request, and three-year payroll records. The chapter states no employee revocation right and no deduction-specific wage floor; the state minimum wage (ch. 91D) and federal law set the general floor |
If an employer 'intentionally' fails to pay wages, it is liable for the unpaid wages plus liquidated damages, court costs, and usual and necessary attorney's fees; otherwise it owes the wages, costs, and fees (§ 91A.8). Liquidated damages run at 5% of the unpaid wages per day, excluding Sundays, legal holidays, and the first seven days after payday, capped at the unpaid wages (§ 91A.2(6)). An employee may file a wage claim with the Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing within one year, and the director may sue on an assigned claim; retaliation for a claim is prohibited (§ 91A.10) |
| Kansas verified 2026-07-13 | Kansas Wage Payment Act, K.S.A. 44-313 to 44-327. The deduction rule is K.S.A. 44-319; notice duties are in 44-320, the willful-nonpayment penalty in 44-315, and Kansas Department of Labor enforcement in 44-322a. Section 44-319(a) is a closed 'no employer may withhold, deduct or divert ... unless' list, expanded by subsections (b)-(c) for specified employer-benefit recoveries. Covers private-sector employees under the Act |
Allowed where the employer 'is required or empowered to do so by state or federal law' (K.S.A. 44-319(a)(1)), taxes, garnishment, court-ordered support; deductions for medical, surgical, or hospital care 'without financial benefit to the employer' that are openly recorded (44-319(a)(2)); and automatic-enrollment retirement-plan contributions under 44-319a, 401(k), 403(b), 408, 408A, or 457 plans (44-319(a)(4)) |
A voluntary deduction that benefits the employee needs 'a signed authorization by the employee for deductions for a lawful purpose accruing to the benefit of the employee' (K.S.A. 44-319(a)(3)). Employer-benefit recoveries instead require a 'signed written agreement' under 44-319(b), and final-wage recoveries require 'written notice and explanation' under 44-319(c). Charitable contributions and union-dues check-off are separately allowed (44-319(d)) |
Any 'lawful purpose accruing to the benefit of the employee' with the employee's signed authorization (K.S.A. 44-319(a)(3)), commonly insurance, retirement, savings, and bond programs, plus recorded medical/surgical/hospital care (44-319(a)(2)), automatic-enrollment retirement contributions (44-319(a)(4)), and written-authorized charitable and union-dues deductions (44-319(d)). The statute states a purpose test rather than a fixed enumerated list |
Kansas permits specific employer-benefit recoveries but no open-ended loss deduction. With a signed written agreement, an employer may recover a loan or advance, a payroll overpayment, or the cost of its merchandise or uniforms the employee purchased (K.S.A. 44-319(b)). From final wages, with written notice and explanation, it may also hold wages to recover its own property, tools, safety equipment, devices, keys, until returned, plus merchandise, uniforms, company property, equipment, or tools the employee intentionally purchased (44-319(c)). No listed door covers ordinary cash shortages, breakage, or theft losses; Kansas courts have held such loss deductions unlawful (Excel Corp. v. Kansas Dept. of Human Resources, 12 Kan. App. 2d 417 (1987)) |
Expressly addressed. A payroll overpayment or an employer loan or advance may be recovered by deduction with a signed written agreement (K.S.A. 44-319(b)(1)-(2)) or, from final wages, with written notice and explanation (44-319(c)(2)-(3)). Either way the deduction may not cut pay below the applicable minimum wage (44-319(e)) |
A subsection (c) final-wage recovery requires written notice and explanation first, and wages held for unreturned property must be relinquished once the property is returned (K.S.A. 44-319(c)(1)). On request, the employer must give an itemized statement of deductions made under 44-319 for each pay period (44-320(d)). No deduction may reduce pay below the FLSA minimum wage or the Kansas minimum wage under K.S.A. 44-1203, whichever applies (44-319(e)). The statute states no general revocation-timing or retention rule |
A wage claim is filed with the Kansas Secretary of Labor, who investigates and holds a hearing; the presiding officer determines validity and any damages, subject to the secretary's review and judicial review (K.S.A. 44-322a). For a willful failure to pay wages when due, K.S.A. 44-315(b) makes the employer liable for the wages plus a penalty of 1% of the unpaid wages per day (excluding Sundays and holidays) after the eighth day, or 100% of the unpaid wages, whichever is less |
| Kentucky verified 2026-07-13 | Kentucky Wages and Hours Act, KRS 337.060 (withholding baseline and prohibited deductions), 337.070 (deduction statement for employers with 10+ employees), 337.385 (private/commissioner recovery and 3-year period), and 337.990(4), (6) (civil penalties). Section 337.060 applies to an 'employer' withholding an employee's agreed wage |
Permitted when the employer is authorized by local, state, or federal law (§ 337.060(1)); taxes, support, and garnishment operate under those separate regimes. Union-dues deductions may rest on a qualifying joint wage agreement or collective-bargaining contract, but post-Jan. 9, 2017 agreements still require the employee's written consent (§ 337.060(1)) |
The employee must 'expressly' authorize the deduction in writing (§ 337.060(1)). The statute names no electronic-signature, amount, percentage, frequency, duration, or advance-day formula; the authorization must cover insurance premiums, hospital/medical dues, or another deduction that is not a rebate or deduction from the standard wage set by collective bargaining, wage agreement, or statute |
Written authorization may cover insurance premiums, hospital and medical dues, and other deductions that do not rebate or reduce the standard wage (§ 337.060(1)); union dues also require a qualifying labor agreement and, for agreements entered into, opted into, renewed, or extended on or after Jan. 9, 2017, employee written consent. The list is illustrative, not a closed catalog |
Always prohibited: fines, common-till/cash-box/register shortages used by 2+ people, breakage, and dishonored-check losses where the employee had discretion to accept or reject the check (§ 337.060(2)(a)-(d)). Faulty-work, lost/stolen-property, property-damage, customer-credit, and customer-nonpayment losses are prohibited when not attributable to the employee's willful or intentional disregard of the employer's interest (§ 337.060(2)(e)); if that fault threshold is met, § 337.060(1)'s law-or-express-written-authorization baseline still applies |
No special overpayment, wage-advance, or employer-loan recovery route in § 337.060. Unless another law authorizes recovery, the employer needs the employee's express written authorization, and the deduction may not amount to a rebate or reduction from the standard wage (§ 337.060(1)) |
No general advance-notice, revocation, or authorization-retention rule. Employers with 10+ employees that make deductions must give a paper or electronic statement listing each deduction's amount and general purpose; an electronic statement requires employee access to a computer and printer (§ 337.070). The written-authorization route cannot be used for a rebate or deduction from the standard wage fixed by collective bargaining, wage agreement, or statute (§ 337.060(1)) |
Private action for unpaid wages, an equal amount as liquidated damages (court may reduce for good faith), costs, and reasonable attorney's fees; the commissioner may take a written assignment and sue, and the default limitations period is 3 years (§ 337.385). A § 337.060 violation also carries a $100-$1,000 cabinet penalty and liability to the employee for the amount withheld plus 10% annual interest; violating § 337.070 carries $100-$1,000 per offense, with each continuing day separate (§ 337.990(4), (6)) |
| Louisiana verified 2026-07-13 | Louisiana Wage Payment Act, La. R.S. 23:631-636. Section 23:635 bans employee fines and wage deductions used as fines, with actual-damage exceptions; § 23:634 bars wage-forfeiture contracts and creates one narrow preemployment exam/test-cost withholding rule; §§ 23:631-632 govern wages due after separation |
Sections 23:634-635 do not restate taxes, support, garnishment, or other law-required deductions; those operate under separate laws outside this survey. The statute's express exceptions concern actual employer damage/theft (§ 23:635) and a signed early-resignation exam/test-cost contract (§ 23:634(B)) |
No general employee-consent safe harbor: § 23:635 prohibits fines and fine-like deductions without making a signature an exception. The one express signed-contract route is § 23:634(B): an eligible employee may agree that preemployment medical-exam or drug-test costs will be withheld if the employee resigns within 90 working days, subject to coverage and wage-rate conditions |
No general statutory list or authorization formula for insurance, retirement, dues, charity, meals, lodging, merchandise, or other employee-benefit deductions in §§ 23:631-636; § 23:635 addresses fines rather than creating a comprehensive benefit-deduction code |
A fine or deduction may not exceed actual damage and is permitted only for an employee's willful or negligent damage to goods or works, willful or negligent damage or breakage of employer property, or theft of employer funds after the employee is convicted or pleads guilty (§ 23:635). The text supplies no cash-shortage, customer-nonpayment, ordinary-loss, valuation-hearing, or mere-suspicion exception |
No special overpayment, wage-advance, or employer-loan payroll-recovery procedure in §§ 23:631-636. A signed agreement is not a general exception to § 23:635's ban on fine-like deductions; § 23:634(B)'s contract exception is limited to specified preemployment exam/test costs after an early resignation |
No general advance-notice, revocation, authorization-retention, itemization, or deduction wage-floor rule in §§ 23:631-636. Narrow § 23:634(B) requires a signed contract, excludes part-time and seasonal workers, requires pay of at least $1 above the existing federal minimum wage, and permits exam/test-cost withholding only on a resignation within 90 working days not attributable to a substantial employer-made change |
Violating § 23:634 or § 23:635 is punishable by a $25-$100 fine or 30 days to 3 months' imprisonment (§ 23:636). If a deduction leaves wages due at separation unpaid, § 23:631 requires timely payment of the amount due and the undisputed portion; § 23:632 permits up to 90 days' wages or wages until tender (subject to its good-faith exception) and reasonable attorney's fees after a well-founded suit following demand. The cited sections state no deduction-specific civil limitations period |
| Maine verified 2026-07-13 | 26 M.R.S. §§ 629 and 635. Section 629's anti-kickback rule excludes agriculture and work in/about a private home; § 635's overcompensation rule includes private and public employers, including State and political subdivisions |
Section 629 regulates compensation returned to the employer and states no general tax/court-order exception. Deductions required by tax, support, garnishment, or other law follow those separate statutes and are outside this survey |
No single form for all listed § 629 purposes: the compensation-return agreement may be oral, written, or implied, and the employee must agree to specified premiums. Uniform cleaning requires the employee's choice plus written agreement. Final-wage loan/advance deduction requires a signed writing (§ 626); overpayment above 5% of net pay requires written permission (§ 635) |
Permitted return-of-pay purposes: employee-benefit loan, debt, or advance; employer merchandise; agreed sick/accident benefits or life/group insurance premiums; rent, light, or water for employer housing. 'Debt' means a benefit to employee. Optional uniform cleaning/maintenance may be deducted by written agreement (§ 629) |
Not a deductible 'debt': cash/inventory shortages, dishonored checks/cards, property damage, customer merchandise, uniforms, PPE, or employer-benefit/convenience tools (§ 629(2)). In an unpaid-wage action employer cannot set off property damage or other alleged debts; separate civil action remains available (§ 626) |
Employer-error overpayment: without written permission, max 5% of net pay per later check; full deduction allowed if employee voluntarily quits; three-year recovery lookback (§ 635). Violation can forfeit claim. 'Overcompensation' excludes paid leave, benefits, bonuses, expense reimbursements, commissions, draws, and advances. Final loan/advance deduction needs employee-signed writing (§ 626) |
Each payment statement must show pay-period date, hours, total earnings, and itemized deductions; records retained at least three years, with free printable access if electronic (§ 665). No general revocation rule. State minimum wage is $15.10/hour effective Jan. 1, 2026 (§ 664 and 2026 DOL poster) |
Section 629 violation: $100-$500 fine per violation plus unpaid wages, interest, twice-unpaid-wages liquidated damages, costs, and reasonable attorney fee after statutory waiting rule (§ 626-A); employee or DOL may sue. Section 635 violation can forfeit overpayment claim, with small-employer cure rule. Final-wage deduction violations have parallel § 626 remedies |
| Maryland verified 2026-07-13 | Md. Code, Lab. & Empl. §§ 3-501, 3-503 (Maryland Wage Payment and Collection Law) govern deductions from compensation due for Maryland employment; wages include bonuses, commissions, fringe benefits, overtime, and other promised remuneration. Government employers are excluded under state guidance |
Four statutory routes: competent-court order; employee's express written authorization; Commissioner approval because employee received full consideration; or deduction made under another law or government rule (§ 3-503) |
Statute requires express written authorization. Maryland Labor guidance recommends a separate and distinct statement, signed by employee, concerning only the deduction; authorization remains invalid if inconsistent with other law |
No closed benefit-purpose list. Voluntary benefit and purchase deductions depend on express written authorization and any separate plan or federal/state law; Commissioner may approve a deduction when the employee received full consideration |
With proper authorization, loss deduction requires admitted or court-determined employee fault/negligence and must preserve minimum wage (Maryland Labor guidance). This covers damage/shortage-type losses; an authorization cannot override other law |
No special overpayment schedule, lookback, or dispute procedure. Express written authorization or Commissioner approval controls; guidance lists personal loans and wage advances as value received and distinguishes them from employer-loss deductions |
Section 3-503 states no general advance-notice, revocation, or retention period beyond express writing. Loss deductions may not reduce pay below required minimum wage; guidance says deductions for monetary value received/retained may go below that floor, but other state/federal limits still apply |
Commissioner may handle claims up to $5,000 and order wages plus 5% annual interest (§ 3-507.1). Private action may recover up to 3x wages plus counsel fees/costs absent bona fide dispute (§ 3-507.2); agency form says file within 2 years, while civil action generally has 3 years (§ 5-101) |
| Massachusetts verified 2026-07-13 | Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 149, §§ 148, 150 (Wage Act) govern wage payment and limit defenses to nonpayment; 454 CMR 27.05 and 27.07 govern deductions/records under the Minimum Fair Wages Act. Current state guidance applies Camara's 'clear and established debt' test |
Section 150 recognizes attachment by trustee process, a valid assignment, and a valid setoff as limited defenses. 454 CMR 27.05(1) permits deductions required or expressly allowed by law; lawful attachments and other outside-law deductions follow their own authority |
No general employee-signature gateway. A voluntary agreement supports a setoff only when it establishes a clear, undisputed debt; consent does not validate a loss deduction based on the employer's unilateral liability and damages determination (Camara/DLS notice) |
No general benefit-category list in §§ 148-150. 454 CMR 27.05 permits meals and lodging against minimum wage only with prior written notice, voluntary written acceptance, actual receipt/use, and regulatory dollar caps; other deductions need separate law or a valid setoff |
No unilateral shortage/damage deduction: the Camara/DLS notice invalidated an employer policy allowing deductions for vehicle damage, while a valid setoff requires an established debt and a protective process. Required uniform purchase/rental and special-cleaning costs must be reimbursed; indirect billing is barred (454 CMR 27.05(4)-(5)) |
No statutory installment schedule. Current AG enforcement advisory: a disputed inadvertent overpayment cannot be deducted; undisputed recoupment must be fair/reasonable, stay within the wage-attachment ceiling derived from ch. 246, § 28, and never reduce hourly pay below minimum wage. Sections 148-150 create no separate loan/advance recovery route |
Pay slip must show deductions (§ 148); records of deductions and separate charges kept 3 years (454 CMR 27.07(2)). No deduction from basic minimum wage except law-required/allowed items and compliant meals/lodging; lodging/meals need advance written notice and voluntary written acceptance (454 CMR 27.05) |
AG may warn or cite, order restitution, and assess up to $25,000 per violation, subject to lower first-violation caps (§ 27C). After filing with the AG and waiting 90 days (or earlier assent), employee may sue within 3 years; prevailing employee gets treble lost wages/benefits, costs, and reasonable attorney's fees (§ 150) |
| Michigan verified 2026-07-13 | Payment of Wages and Fringe Benefits Act, 1978 PA 390, MCL 408.477 (Sec. 7, 'Deductions from wages'). Department complaint and remedies in §§ 408.481, 408.488-.489. Covers public and private employers with 1+ employees (§ 408.477(7)) |
Deductions 'required or expressly permitted by law or by a collective bargaining agreement' need no separate employee consent (§ 408.477(1)). The Act recognizes collective-bargaining authorization as its own category alongside legal requirement |
Any other deduction needs the employee's 'full, free, and written consent ... obtained without intimidation or fear of discharge for refusal to permit the deduction' (§ 408.477(1)). A verbal okay or a general handbook clause is not enough. A deduction 'for the benefit of the employer' requires written consent for EACH wage payment subject to it (§ 408.477(2)). Special rule for charitable contributions to a 501(c)(3): one written consent covers later paychecks and no separate per-check consent is required, but the employee may rescind it in writing at any time (§ 408.477(2)) |
No enumerated list of permitted benefit categories and no exclusive/illustrative catalog. A voluntary deduction requires full, free, written consent; the statute singles out qualifying charitable contributions to a nonprofit for standing-consent treatment (§ 408.477(1)-(2)) |
No special shortage, uniform, tool, breakage, or theft exception in § 408.477. A deduction for cash/inventory shortages, damage, or unreturned property benefits the employer, so it needs written consent for each affected paycheck and cannot reduce gross wages below the state minimum (§ 408.477(2)) |
Overpayments have a narrow no-consent route (§ 408.477(4)): within 6 months of a wage/fringe overpayment caused by a mathematical miscalculation, typographical error, clerical error, or misprint, the employer may deduct it WITHOUT consent only if it (a) gives written explanation at least one pay period before, (b) takes no more than 15% of the pay period's gross wages, (c) deducts after all legally required and employee-authorized deductions, and (d) does not drop pay below the greater of the state or federal minimum wage. Wage advances and employer loans get no special statute: the ordinary written-consent rule (§ 408.477(1)-(2)) controls their recovery |
Notice: written explanation at least one pay period before an overpayment or employer-paid default-judgment deduction (§ 408.477(4)(c), (5)(a)). Revocation: charitable-contribution consent is rescindable in writing at any time; for an employer-benefit deduction, consent is required per wage payment (§ 408.477(2)). Records: each deduction must be substantiated in the employer's records and identified to the individual employee, and prorating a deduction between two or more employees is barred (§ 408.477(3)). Wage floor: cumulative deductions cannot reduce gross wages below the state minimum under the Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act (§ 408.477(2)) |
File a written complaint with the department within 12 months of the violation (§ 408.481(1); § 408.477(6) for the overpayment/default-judgment routes). The department shall order wages due plus a 10%-annual penalty running from the complaint notice until payment; may order exemplary damages up to twice the wages due if the violation is flagrant or repeated; and may order attorney, hearing, and transcript costs, plus a civil penalty up to $1,000 paid to the state (§ 408.488). The director enforces a final agency order by civil action (§ 408.489) |
| Minnesota verified 2026-07-13 | Minn. Stat. § 181.79 applies to direct or indirect deductions from wages due or earned by employees other than independent contractors for loss, theft, property damage, or employee-to-employer indebtedness. Section 177.24, subds. 4-5 separately governs uniforms, equipment, supplies, and work travel |
Section 181.79 does not resurvey taxes, support, garnishment, or other law-created withholding. Its own ceiling uses the amount law makes subject to garnishment or wage execution; a contrary collective-bargaining provision is an express exception |
For loss, damage, theft, or an existing debt: voluntary written authorization only after the loss occurs or debt arises, stating the amount deducted each pay period (§ 181.79, subd. 1(a)). For an employee purchase or employer loan, written authorization may be given before the transaction and may permit regular-interval or termination deductions (subd. 1(c)(3)) |
Section 181.79 has no closed list of insurance or benefit deductions. It expressly recognizes preauthorized deductions for an employee purchase or loan from the employer; other benefit deductions remain subject to the wage agreement and separate governing law |
Lost/stolen property, damage, or other employer claim requires post-event voluntary writing with per-pay amount or a court liability judgment; contrary agreement is void. Uniform/equipment deductions are capped at $50 (special motor-vehicle-dealer rule), cannot cut pay below minimum wage, and generally must be fully reimbursed at termination (§ 177.24, subds. 4-5) |
No special overpayment schedule. An asserted overpayment is an employee-to-employer indebtedness, so ordinary post-debt written authorization or court judgment controls. An employer loan or purchase is the express exception that may be authorized in writing before the transaction for periodic or termination deductions (§ 181.79, subd. 1(c)(3)) |
Authorization must state the amount per pay period; § 181.79 states no general revocation or retention period. Loss/debt deduction cannot exceed the amount subject to garnishment or execution. Uniform/equipment/supply/travel deductions cannot reduce wages below minimum wage and generally must be reimbursed in full at termination |
Private action under § 181.79, subd. 2: employer owes twice the deduction or credit. DLI may issue a § 177.27 compliance order reaching § 181.79 and order back pay, an equal liquidated amount, and other relief. Wage claims generally have 2 years, 3 for willful nonpayment or failure to submit requested payroll records (§ 541.07(5)) |
| Mississippi verified 2026-07-17 | No general Mississippi private-sector wage-deduction statute. Title 71 (Labor and Industry), Chapter 1 (Employer and Employee) has no provision authorizing, limiting, or conditioning deductions from earned wages generally; the only deduction-adjacent rules are narrow — § 71-1-45 (wage assignment or pledge securing a merchandise purchase), the right-to-work bar on compelled union-dues deductions (§ 71-1-47), and § 71-5-535 (employer may not deduct its own unemployment contribution) |
No general Mississippi deduction statute restates a law-required-withholding exception; taxes, child support, and creditor garnishment operate under their own separate laws outside this survey. Section 71-5-535 separately bars an employer from deducting its own unemployment-insurance contribution from an employee's wages |
No general Mississippi signature, written-consent, electronic, timing, or specificity requirement for a voluntary payroll deduction. For a third-party wage assignment or pledge securing a goods purchase, § 71-1-45 makes it non-binding on the employer unless the assignee first serves the employer a copy and obtains the employer's written agreement to be bound |
No general Mississippi list of permitted insurance, retirement, union-dues, charity, meal, lodging, or merchandise deductions; the state creates no closed or illustrative employee-benefit-deduction catalog |
No general Mississippi payroll-deduction rule for uniforms, tools, cash or inventory shortages, breakage, damage, theft, customer nonpayment, or unreturned property; the state supplies no deduction-specific fault standard, advance-notice, valuation, criminal-process, or final-paycheck procedure |
No general Mississippi payroll-recovery procedure for wage overpayments, advances, or employer loans; no state lookback, periodic cap, written-agreement, notice, dispute process, principal-only rule, or final-wage exception in this scope |
No general Mississippi advance-notice, revocation, or authorization-retention duty and no deduction-specific wage floor. Mississippi has no state minimum-wage law, so the federal Fair Labor Standards Act sets any wage floor a deduction may not breach |
No Mississippi deduction-specific agency wage claim, repayment multiplier, civil penalty, attorney-fee provision, or state limitations period. The only Chapter 1 sanction is the general misdemeanor penalty of § 71-1-53 ($25 to $250) for a chapter violation lacking another penalty; a wage assignment that fails § 71-1-45's service-and-consent condition is simply void against the employer |
| Missouri verified 2026-07-13 | Missouri has no general statute authorizing or restricting deductions from a private employee's wages. Chapter 290 (Wages, Hours and Dismissal Rights) requires an employer paying semimonthly to furnish a monthly 'statement showing the total amount of deductions' (RSMo 290.080) and 30 days' notice before reducing wages (RSMo 290.100), but sets no consent-and-purpose deduction regime. The only statute requiring a written deduction agreement, RSMo 290.315, is confined to public-works prevailing-wage contractors. Private-sector deductions are governed by the employment agreement and the state and federal minimum-wage floors |
Taxes, court-ordered garnishment, and child support operate under their own laws; Chapter 290 does not resurvey them and creates no separate law-required-deduction category. There is no statutory collective-bargaining deduction provision in the chapter's general wage sections for private employees |
No general statute requires, or defines the form of, an employee's written authorization for a private-sector deduction. Consent operates through the ordinary employment agreement, not a statutory signature-and-purpose formula. The one written-agreement requirement in Chapter 290, RSMo 290.315, applies only to public-works contractors and requires the written deduction agreement to be approved by the awarding public body as fair and reasonable |
Missouri law provides no enumerated list of permitted benefit deductions and no purpose restriction for private employees. Voluntary deductions for insurance, retirement, dues, or purchases rest on the employee's agreement and general law rather than a statutory catalog |
No statute specifically permits or bars deductions for cash shortages, breakage, damage, theft, uniforms, or tools from an ordinary paycheck; the operative limit is the minimum-wage floor: a deduction that drops pay below the state or federal minimum wage is unlawful. For a discharged employee, RSMo 290.110 makes the earned wages due 'without abatement or deduction' on the day of discharge, so employer-loss offsets against a discharge final paycheck fall outside the statute's terms |
Chapter 290 creates no special overpayment, advance, or employer-loan recovery procedure: no lookback, cap, notice, or dispute process. Recovery from wages rests on the employee's agreement and is bounded by the minimum-wage floor; absent an agreement, the employer's route is an ordinary civil claim rather than payroll self-help |
Two disclosure/notice rules apply: an employer must furnish at least monthly a statement of total deductions (RSMo 290.080, a misdemeanor to omit), and must give 30 days' notice before reducing wages (RSMo 290.100). There is no statutory revocation procedure because there is no statutory authorization procedure. The wage floor is the state minimum wage (Missouri Minimum Wage Law, RSMo 290.500 to 290.530) and the federal minimum wage; a deduction may not reduce pay below it |
Remedies depend on the violation. A deduction that drops pay below the state minimum wage is actionable under the Missouri Minimum Wage Law: the employee may recover the full wage rate plus 'an additional amount equal to twice the unpaid wages as liquidated damages,' costs, and reasonable attorney's fees, within three years (RSMo 290.527). For a discharged employee, unpaid earned wages carry a continuing-wage penalty for up to 60 days (RSMo 290.110). Failing to furnish the required deduction statement is a misdemeanor (RSMo 290.080). An above-minimum-wage deduction taken with no agreement is otherwise pursued as a contract claim |
| Montana verified 2026-07-13 | Mont. Code Ann. §§ 39-3-201 to 39-3-216, especially § 39-3-204. Covers an employee working for hire and employers acting directly/indirectly in employer's interest; United States excluded (§ 39-3-201) |
Allowed when otherwise provided by law. DLI identifies federal/state taxes, Social Security, and garnishment orders as examples (§ 39-3-204 and current Wage and Hour FAQ) |
Board, room, or other reasonable employee-benefit incidentals must be supplied by employer and part of employment conditions; statute does not require writing, though DLI strongly recommends it. A broader signed contract does not authorize business-loss deductions. Final alleged-theft withholding requires employee's written agreement or timely law-enforcement report (§§ 39-3-204 to -205) |
No enumerated benefit list. Only reasonable deductions for board, room, and other incidentals supplied by employer as part of employment conditions; DLI construes incidentals as for employee's benefit. Any separate law-created benefit deduction remains governed by that law (§ 39-3-204) |
No payroll withholding for shortages, damages, mistakes, employee negligence, unauthorized mileage, cargo/property retrieval, insurance deductibles, or employee accounts, even by contract. Final check cannot be held for keys, uniforms, tools, or equipment. Narrow final-pay theft route: written consent or police report within 7 business days; court charges within 30 days or wages become due (§ 39-3-205) |
No special Wage Payment Act route for payroll overpayments, advances, or employer loans. Section 39-3-204 authorizes only law-provided deductions and reasonable board/room/other supplied incidentals; official AG guidance says an employer account cannot be paid from wages outside those categories. Separate civil recovery is not converted into payroll self-help |
At every payment, give itemized statement of every deduction and amount; if none, statement must say so (§ 39-3-101). No general authorization-revocation or retention rule stated. Current minimum wage $10.85/hour; $4 small-business exception only for annual sales ≤$110,000 and no governing FLSA coverage (§ 39-3-409; DLI FAQ) |
DLI investigation/wage claim; complaint within 180 days of default, with 2-year recovery lookback or 3 years for repeated violations (§§ 39-3-207, -210). Full unpaid wages plus penalty up to 110%; misdemeanor (§ 39-3-206). Successful wage judgment includes reasonable attorney fees and costs (§ 39-3-214) |
| Nebraska verified 2026-07-13 | Nebraska Wage Payment and Collection Act, Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 48-1228 to 48-1234; the operative deduction rule is § 48-1230(1). An employer 'may deduct, withhold, or divert a portion of an employee's wages only when' state or federal law requires or permits it, a court orders it, or the employer 'has a written agreement with the employee.' 'Wages' is defined broadly to include fringe benefits such as earned vacation and commissions once agreed conditions are met (§ 48-1229) |
Section 48-1230(1) permits a deduction when 'the employer is required to or may do so by state or federal law or by order of a court of competent jurisdiction' — income-tax withholding, wage garnishment, child-support orders, and similar mandates. Those regimes have their own separate laws outside this survey. No employee signature is needed for a law-required or court-ordered deduction |
A voluntary deduction is lawful only where 'the employer has a written agreement with the employee to deduct, withhold, or divert' (§ 48-1230(1)). A written agreement is the sole consent route; verbal consent does not satisfy the statute. The statute fixes no particular form, timing, or per-item specificity, and states no revocation rule — but the agreement must be in writing and cover the deduction |
No enumerated statutory list of permitted benefit categories and no separate 'purpose' test. Any voluntary deduction — insurance, retirement contributions, union dues, workplace purchases, and the like — is lawful if it is covered by a written agreement with the employee (§ 48-1230(1)). The statute limits the method of authorization (a writing), not the type of benefit |
No special rule for cash or inventory shortages, breakage, damage, theft, or unreturned property. Such a charge may be deducted only under a written agreement with the employee or a court order (§ 48-1230(1)). Even where the employee has admitted taking money or property, the employer may not unilaterally withhold it without a signed agreement; its remedy is a separate civil suit. The Act states no fault standard, valuation step, or criminal-process exception |
No special statutory procedure for recovering overpayments, wage advances, or employer loans. Recovery from wages is lawful only under a written agreement with the employee or a court order (§ 48-1230(1)); otherwise it is an unlawful deduction. The Act sets no lookback, periodic cap, notice, or dispute mechanism, and no principal-only or interest rule |
Each regular payday the employer must deliver or make available a wage statement showing the identity of the employer, the hours for which the employee was paid, the wages earned, and 'deductions made for the employee' (§ 48-1230(2)). Thirty days' written notice is required before regular paydays are altered (§ 48-1230(1)). The deduction statute sets no net-pay floor of its own; separately, the Wage and Hour Act minimum wage — $15.00 an hour on and after January 1, 2026 (§ 48-1203) — applies. No statutory revocation right attaches to the written agreement |
An employee whose wages — including an improperly deducted amount — are not paid within 30 days of the regular payday may sue and, on prevailing, recover the full amount of the judgment, all costs, and reasonable attorney's fees (§ 48-1231). Separately, if the nonpayment is found willful, 'an amount equal to two times the amount of unpaid wages shall be recovered from the employer' and remitted to the State Treasurer (§ 48-1232) — a penalty paid to the state, not the employee. The right to sue for wages arises from the parties' contract |
| Nevada verified 2026-07-13 | Nevada Revised Statutes ch. 608 (Compensation, Wages and Hours) governs private-sector wages; the deduction statute is NRS 608.110 and the operative rule is the Labor Commissioner's regulation NAC 608.160. The Labor Commissioner enforces the chapter (NRS 608.180), and a violation of the chapter 'or any regulation adopted pursuant thereto' is a misdemeanor (NRS 608.195) |
Without the employee's written authorization, an employer may withhold only 'any amount required by law' and 'any employee contribution to a benefit program, such as health insurance or a pension plan' (NAC 608.160(1)). NRS 608.110(1) likewise permits dues or assessments to a hospital, relief, or savings association maintained for the benefit of employees |
Any other deduction requires all three of: the employer has 'a reasonable basis to believe that the employee is responsible for the amount'; the deduction 'is for a specific purpose, pay period and amount'; and 'the employee voluntarily authorizes the employer, in writing' (NAC 608.160(2)). A blanket authorization 'made in advance by the employee' cannot be used (NAC 608.160(3)); NRS 608.110(1) frames a voluntary deduction as one 'authorized by written order of an employee' |
Nevada gives no exhaustive benefit list. NRS 608.110(1) recognizes dues, rates, or assessments to a hospital, relief, savings, or similar association 'for the benefit of the employees,' plus 'other deductions authorized by written order of an employee,' and NAC 608.160(1)(b) treats benefit-program contributions such as health insurance or a pension as deductible without separate authorization |
There is no shortage or breakage self-help statute; such a deduction must meet NAC 608.160(2)'s three requirements (reasonable basis that the employee is responsible, specific purpose/pay period/amount, and voluntary written authorization) and cannot rest on a blanket advance authorization (NAC 608.160(3)). Two categories are barred outright: tips or gratuities may not be taken or deducted (NRS 608.160), and distinctive uniforms and accessories 'shall be furnished, without cost, to employees' (NRS 608.165) |
Chapter 608 creates no special overpayment, advance, or loan recovery route. Recovering one from wages must satisfy NAC 608.160(2) (reasonable basis, specific purpose/pay period/amount, voluntary written authorization) and may not use a blanket advance authorization (NAC 608.160(3)). Separately, NRS 608.100(2) makes it 'unlawful for any employer to require an employee to rebate, refund or return any part of the wage, salary or compensation earned by and paid to the employee' |
At the time of payment the employer must furnish 'an itemized list showing the respective deductions made from the total amount of wages' (NRS 608.110(2)), and each authorization must state a specific purpose, pay period, and amount (NAC 608.160(2)(b)). Nevada states no employee revocation right. On the wage floor, the Labor Commissioner has advised that a voluntary deduction for the employee's benefit may reduce net pay only if gross wages still meet the applicable minimum wage, while a deduction for the employer's benefit may not cut pay below the minimum |
The Labor Commissioner enforces ch. 608 and may refer violations for prosecution (NRS 608.180). An employee who sues for wages 'earned and due' and prevails is entitled to 'a reasonable attorney fee, in addition to the amount found due for wages and penalties' (NRS 608.140). A violation of the chapter or of a regulation adopted under it — including NAC 608.160 — is a misdemeanor (NRS 608.195); the Labor Commissioner also takes wage claims administratively |
| New Hampshire verified 2026-07-13 | N.H. Rev. Stat. §§ 275:42 and 275:48, with Lab 800 rules. General private-employer rule; excludes domestic labor in the employer's home and farm labor where fewer than five people are employed (§ 275:42(I)) |
Allowed when required or empowered by state or federal law, expressly including payroll taxes (§ 275:48(I)(a)). Separate tax, support, and garnishment procedures are outside this survey |
Written employee authorization or request required. Purpose must accrue to employee's benefit or fit a listed category; mutual-agreement catchall cannot financially advantage employer. Loans, overpayments, tuition, and fitness deductions require start/end dates, amounts, and a final-wage agreement (§ 275:48) |
Listed categories include union dues; health, welfare, pension and apprenticeship funds; charity; housing/utilities; outside savings; nonrequired-clothing rental/cleaning; certain vehicle use; insurance; required nonuniform clothing; legal/identity-theft plans; cafeteria/flexible benefits; child care, parking, specified hospital purchases, tuition, and fitness (§ 275:48) |
Illegal withholding for employee-caused loss/damage triggers no-warning civil-penalty process (§ 273:11-a(III)(f)). Items required by and for employer's benefit and required-logo/distinctive uniforms must be free (Lab 803.02; § 275:48(V)(b)); DOL says no final-wage deduction even if a required uniform is not returned |
Accidental overpayment: written agreement, deductions start one pay period later, stated start/end and amount, no more than 20% of gross pay per period, plus specific final-wage agreement. Legitimate employer loan requires start/end, amounts, and final-wage term. Final negative commission draw is not recoverable (§§ 275:42(VII), 275:48(I)(d)) |
Deduction statement each affected pay period; written itemized accounting at least monthly for § 275:48(I)(d) items; wage/hour records kept three years (§ 275:49). No general statutory revocation timing. Covered employees cannot fall below the federal minimum-wage rate incorporated by § 279:21; DOL identifies current rate as $7.25/hour |
DOL wage claim within 36 months (§ 275:51); employee may sue and court may award costs/reasonable fees (§ 275:53). Commissioner civil penalty up to $2,500; no warning for illegal loss/damage withholding (§ 273:11-a). Willful chapter violation is a misdemeanor (§ 275:52); final-wage delay can add liquidated damages (§ 275:44(IV)) |
| New Jersey verified 2026-07-13 | New Jersey Wage Payment Law, N.J.S.A. 34:11-4.1 to -4.15; § 34:11-4.4 supplies a closed list plus a regulatory catch-all. Agreements contrary to the Act are void (§ 34:11-4.7); civil remedies are in § 34:11-4.10(c) |
Allowed when the employer is required or empowered by New Jersey or federal law (§ 34:11-4.4(a)); listed categories may also use a collective-bargaining agreement where the paragraph says so. P.L.2025, c.358 separately treats qualifying State/local public deferred-compensation auto-enrollment as written authorization, with notice and an opt-out/change opportunity |
No general signature gateway. The purpose must fit § 34:11-4.4(b), then satisfy that paragraph's own wording: written employee authorization or CBA for (1)-(2); employee authorization for (3), (5)-(6), (8)-(10); original scheduled agreement for company products/employer loans in (4). Several, but not all, categories also require employer approval |
Closed list: welfare/insurance/medical/pension/retirement/profit-sharing/IRAs; thrift and securities plans; personal savings; scheduled company products and employer loans; safety equipment, U.S. bonds, payroll-error corrections, airport-ID replacement; charities; uniform rental/cleaning; labor dues; political contributions; employer-sponsored insurance/annuities; plus Commissioner-authorized regulatory additions (§ 34:11-4.4(b)(1)-(11)) |
Cash/inventory shortages, breakage, damage, theft, customer nonpayment, tool cost, and unreturned equipment are not § 34:11-4.4(b) categories; employee consent cannot add them. Paragraph (6) permits only authorized rental or laundering/dry-cleaning of work clothing or uniforms, not their purchase/replacement cost |
Paragraph (4) permits 'payments to correct payroll errors' and requires employer approval, but states no employee-consent, lookback, notice, dispute, or percentage formula. Employer loans and company products require a periodic payment schedule in the original loan/purchase agreement. No separate wage-advance route |
Section 34:11-4.4 states no general notice, revocation, record-retention, or wage-floor formula; paragraph-specific terms control. P.L.2025, c.358 requires notice and a reasonable opportunity to stop or change public deferred-compensation auto-deferrals. Regulatory additions may carry their own conditions under paragraph (11) |
An agreement to pay wages contrary to the Act is void, and the employee may sue for the full wages (§ 34:11-4.7). Section 34:11-4.10(c) permits recovery of wages due plus up to 200% liquidated damages, costs, and reasonable attorney's fees; a good-faith first violation can avoid liquidated damages if acknowledged and paid within 30 days of notice |
| New Mexico verified 2026-07-13 | New Mexico Wage Payment Act, NMSA 1978 §§ 50-4-1 to 50-4-12, especially § 50-4-2(B), plus 11.1.4.7(R) NMAC and the Minimum Wage Act floor in § 50-4-22(A). The Wage Payment Act covers employers of persons in New Mexico except employers of livestock and agricultural labor (§ 50-4-1(A)); the minimum-wage floor has its own coverage and exemptions |
The Labor Relations Division identifies state and federal taxes lawfully remitted and court-ordered deductions such as child support and garnishments as lawful deductions. Section 50-4-2(B) permits wages to be reduced by 'lawful deductions'; special statutory deductions include the reasonable value of food, utilities, supplies, or housing furnished to an agricultural employee (§ 50-4-22(B)) |
Ordinary payroll deductions must be authorized by employer and employee in a written contract of hiring made at hiring (§ 50-4-2(B), as applied by the Labor Relations Division). DWS says a deduction is not lawful without written authorization signed by both employer and employee. For an advance or overpayment, 11.1.4.7(R) defines authorization as an employee-signed document made at hiring or before the particular deduction |
With the required written authorization, employee-benefit deductions may include insurance premiums, retirement contributions, health savings accounts, and meals, lodging, or similar benefits. DWS permits such a deduction to reduce take-home pay below minimum wage only when it primarily benefits the employee; meals or lodging must reflect reasonable value rather than employer profit |
DWS treats breakage or lost equipment or tools, theft or cash shortages, an employee-fault company-vehicle insurance deductible, uniforms and work equipment, profit-making housing charges, and disciplinary deductions as primarily for the employer. A written hiring agreement may authorize such a deduction under the Wage Payment Act, but it may not reduce net take-home pay below the applicable minimum wage |
An advance or wage overpayment may be deducted only with written authorization signed by the employee at hiring or before the particular deduction, and the employer must still pay at least minimum wage times hours worked (11.1.4.7(R) NMAC). The cited DWS guidance does not separately address employer loans. Used frontloaded earned sick leave may not be recouped through payroll even with a signed agreement or after separation (11.1.6.8(A) NMAC) |
Each paycheck must include a written receipt listing gross pay, hours, total wages and benefits earned, and every deduction (§ 50-4-2(B)). The cited provisions state no separate revocation procedure. Employee-benefit deductions may cross the minimum-wage line, but employer-benefit deductions and advance/overpayment recovery may not; employers bear the burden of keeping true and accurate time-and-pay records (11.1.4.115 NMAC) |
An employee may file an unauthorized-deduction wage claim with the Labor Relations Division within three years of the employer's last violation (11.1.4.100, 11.1.4.102 NMAC). A deduction that causes a § 50-4-22 minimum-wage underpayment can result in unpaid wages, interest, and an additional amount equal to twice the underpayment (11.1.4.109 NMAC). Any Wage Payment Act violation is also a misdemeanor; a repeat offense carries a mandatory $250-$1,000 fine for each offense (§ 50-4-10) |
| New York verified 2026-07-13 | N.Y. Lab. Law § 193 is the deductions statute; § 198-b bars coerced wage 'kickbacks'; § 198 supplies remedies. Applies to private-sector employees under Article 6. Currency flag: the current expanded § 193 is 'effective until November 6, 2028,' when it reverts to a narrower pre-2012 version |
Permitted when made 'in accordance with the provisions of any law or any rule or regulation issued by any governmental agency,' including the Labor Commissioner's regulations under § 193(1)(c)-(d) (§ 193(1)(a)). IRS-approved employer-sponsored pre-tax contribution-plan deductions are deemed law-authorized (§ 193(2)) |
Must be 'expressly authorized in writing,' 'voluntary,' and given only after written notice of all terms, conditions, benefits, and the manner of deduction; any substantial change (including a change in amount) requires fresh notice (§ 193(1)(b)). Revocable in writing at any time; the employer must stop within four pay periods or eight weeks, whichever is sooner (§ 193(3)(c)) |
Must be 'for the benefit of the employee' and drawn from the enumerated § 193(1)(b) list: e.g., insurance premiums and prepaid legal plans, pension or health/welfare benefits, charitable contributions, U.S. bonds, union dues, discounted parking or mass-transit passes, gym membership, and 'similar payments for the benefit of the employee.' Discretionary purchase/parking/transit categories carry an aggregate per-pay-period cap the employer and employee set (§ 193(3)(b)) |
Not permitted. Shortages, breakage, damage, theft, and uniforms are not on the § 193(1)(b) benefit list, and § 193(3)(a) bars any 'charge against wages' or 'separate transaction' unless it would qualify as a lawful deduction under subdivision 1. An employer's loss is pursued off-payroll, not by self-help |
Recovery allowed only for an overpayment 'due to a mathematical or other clerical error' (§ 193(1)(c)) and for 'repayment of advances of salary or wages' (§ 193(1)(d)), each strictly per the Commissioner's regulations (12 NYCRR Part 195) that § 193(1)(c) requires to govern the size, timing, frequency, periodic cap, advance notice, and a dispute procedure. These recovery routes are part of the text set to sunset November 6, 2028 |
Written notice of all terms before authorization; the signed authorization kept on file; revocation in writing anytime, employer stops within four pay periods or eight weeks (§ 193(3)(c)). No dollar wage floor inside § 193, but § 193(5) allows 'no exception to liability ... for the unauthorized failure to pay wages, benefits or wage supplements,' and § 193(4) preserves Personal Property Law article 3-A and the § 221 company-store bar |
DOL wage claim or civil suit under § 198: the full underpayment, prejudgment interest, reasonable attorney's fees, and liquidated damages up to 100% of wages due (up to 300% only for a willful § 194 equal-pay violation) unless the employer proves a good-faith compliance basis (§ 198(1-a)). A coerced wage kickback is a misdemeanor (§ 198-b) |
| North Carolina verified 2026-07-13 | North Carolina Wage and Hour Act, N.C. Gen. Stat. § 95-25.8 (Withholding of Wages); recordkeeping in § 95-25.13; remedies in § 95-25.22; agency rules at 13 NCAC 12.0305. The NCWHA covers North Carolina employers, and the Wage and Hour Bureau of the NC Department of Labor administers it |
Allowed when the employer is 'required or empowered to do so by State or federal law' (§ 95-25.8(a)(1)): taxes, FICA, court-ordered garnishment. No separate employee authorization is needed for these |
Turns on whether the amount is known. Known/agreed amount: written authorization signed on or before the payday, stating the reason and the dollar amount or percentage (§ 95-25.8(a)(2)). Amount not known in advance: written authorization signed on or before payday stating the reason, PLUS advance written notice of the actual amount, written notice of the right to withdraw, and a reasonable opportunity to withdraw in writing (§ 95-25.8(a)(3)). Electronic authorizations count (§ 95-25.8(f)) |
No closed statutory list; the line is 'convenience of the employee,' which the agency rule illustrates as savings plans, credit-union installments, savings bonds, union or club dues, non-required uniform rental/cleaning, parking, and charitable contributions (13 NCAC 12.0305(b)). A convenience-of-the-employee authorization may be withdrawn; an employer-benefit one may not |
Permitted as employer-benefit deductions but tightly gated: satisfy the written-authorization rules AND give seven days' written notice of the amount before the payday for cash shortages, inventory shortages, or loss or damage to property (§ 95-25.8(c)): the seven-day notice is waived on separation. If criminal process has issued for a charge incident to the shortage or damage, the employer may recoup without authorization, subject to the wage floor, and must reimburse if the employee is not found guilty (§ 95-25.8(e)) |
Treated as prepayment of wages: a bona fide overpayment from a miscalculation or error, an advance of wages, and the principal of an employer loan may be deducted WITHOUT the § 95-25.8(a) written authorization (§ 95-25.8(d)). Interest and other loan charges DO require written authorization. A bona fide underpayment must be repaid by the next payday with interest (13 NCAC 12.0305(f)) |
Withdrawal: convenience-of-the-employee authorizations may be withdrawn on a reasonable opportunity of at least three days (13 NCAC 12.0305(c)); employer-benefit authorizations may not. Records: an itemized statement of deductions each pay period (§ 95-25.13(4)). Wage floor: employer-benefit deductions may reduce nonovertime pay only down to the minimum wage and may not touch overtime wages owed (§ 95-25.8(b)) |
Recover unpaid wages plus interest at the legal rate (§ 95-25.22(a)); the court shall award liquidated damages equal to the amount due unless the employer proves a good-faith, reasonable-grounds defense (§ 95-25.22(a1)); plus costs and reasonable attorney's fees (§ 95-25.22(d)). Enforced by a private action or by the Labor Commissioner; the limitations period is two years (§ 95-25.22(f)) |
| North Dakota verified 2026-07-13 | N.D.C.C. ch. 34-14 applies broadly to every person or entity employing someone in North Dakota (§ 34-14-01); § 34-14-04.1 supplies the exclusive general withholding categories |
Amounts required under state or federal law and compensation a court orders the employer to withhold (§ 34-14-04.1); the underlying tax, support, and garnishment procedures remain outside this survey |
Recurring deduction: employee's written authorization. One-time deduction: written authorization that specifically cites the deduction's source. Damage/breakage/shortage/negligence: employee authorization at the time of deduction (§ 34-14-04.1(2)-(4)) |
No closed benefit-purpose list. A recurring benefit or purchase deduction uses written authorization; a one-time item must identify its source (§ 34-14-04.1). Board, lodging, or facilities may count as wages up to $18/day only by written agreement and voluntary acceptance (N.D. Admin. Code § 46-02-07-02(13)) |
A one-time deduction for damage, breakage, shortage, or negligence needs employee authorization at the time of deduction (§ 34-14-04.1(4)); no statutory valuation method or advance blanket authorization. In a wage dispute, only an employer debt the employee concedes may be subtracted (§ 34-14-04) |
Documented advances paid to employees may be withheld without a separate written-authorization category; undocumented cash advances may not (§ 34-14-04.1(1)). No separate overpayment or employer-loan procedure appears in ch. 34-14, so another listed authorization category must fit |
No general advance-notice, revocation, or authorization-retention rule in § 34-14-04.1. Each pay voucher must show required and authorized deductions; a required uniform purchase may not reduce pay below the $7.25 state minimum for the period (N.D. Admin. Code § 46-02-07-02(10)-(11); N.D.C.C. § 34-06-22) |
Department wage claim within 2 years for $125-$15,000 (§ 34-14-09); unpaid wages earn statutory interest, with double or treble wages only after 2 or 3 prior liabilities within the preceding year (§ 34-14-09.1). Willful refusal to pay with the stated intent is an infraction (§ 34-14-07) |
| Ohio verified 2026-07-13 | No comprehensive deduction statute. Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.15 (semimonthly-payment law; defines wage, fringe benefits, and 'employee authorized deduction') and § 4113.19 (damaged-property deductions); criminal penalties in § 4113.99. 'Employer' means an individual, firm, partnership, association, or corporation, excluding most franchisors (§ 4113.15(D)(4)) |
Taxes are assumed: 'wage' is the net amount after any federal, state, or local taxes withheld (§ 4113.15(D)(1)). These sections do not separately restate garnishment or support withholding, which run under their own laws |
No single across-the-board consent formula. Fringe-benefit deductions must be 'pursuant to a written agreement'; other voluntary items ride the 'employee authorized deduction' category; and a deduction for damaged wares, tools, or machinery requires an 'express contract' (§§ 4113.15(D)(1),(3); 4113.19). The statute states no signing, timing, or revocation formula |
Fringe benefits, health, welfare, or retirement benefits and vacation, separation, or holiday pay, by written agreement (§ 4113.15(D)(2)). 'Employee authorized deduction' is a non-exclusive list: U.S. savings bonds or corporate stock/bonds, charitable contributions, credit-union or other regular savings, and repayment of a loan or other obligation (§ 4113.15(D)(3)) |
Section 4113.19 bars an employer, 'without an express contract with his employee,' from deducting or retaining wages 'for wares, tools, or machinery destroyed or damaged.' With an express contract the deduction is allowed; the statute sets no fault standard, and states no separate rule for cash shortages or unreturned property |
'Repayment of a loan or other obligation' is a listed employee-authorized-deduction purpose (§ 4113.15(D)(3)(d)), so loan repayment may be deducted when the employee authorized it. Ohio has no special overpayment or advance-recovery schedule; recovery runs through the authorized-deduction/express-contract framework and ordinary contract law |
These sections state no advance-notice, revocation, or record-retention rule. For amounts deducted to fund a benefit or authorized deduction, § 4113.15(C) makes the employer a trustee who must remit to the third party within 30 days after the pay period closes. No statutory percentage cap or wage-floor beyond the separate minimum-wage law |
Wages unpaid 30 days past payday with no bona fide dispute draw liquidated damages of 6% of the unpaid amount or $200, whichever is greater, plus the wages (§ 4113.15(B)): enforced by civil action. A § 4113.19 violation is a minor misdemeanor; a § 4113.15 violation is a first-degree misdemeanor (§ 4113.99) |
| Oklahoma verified 2026-07-13 | Oklahoma Protection of Labor Act, 40 O.S. §§ 165.1-165.11, with the operative deduction rules in the Department of Labor regulation OAC 380:30-1-7. The statute itself requires only an itemized deduction statement each payday (§ 165.2); the enumerated authorization scheme lives in the regulation. It reaches every 'employer' employing any person in the state and every 'employee' permitted to work (§ 165.1(1)-(2)); remedies are in §§ 165.3 and 165.7 to 165.9 |
An employer may deduct without an agreement only where 'legislation or a court order mandates such' (OAC 380:30-1-7(c)); the rule names FICA, federal and state income tax, Medicare, and garnishments as examples (380:30-1-7(b)). Taxes, support withholding, and garnishment operate under their own separate laws |
Any other deduction needs a voluntary payroll-deduction agreement that is 'in writing, and signed by the employee before any deduction ... is taken' (OAC 380:30-1-7(e)). No deduction is allowed unless mandated by law or court order or made pursuant to such an agreement (380:30-1-7(c)); a general handbook policy is not a signed, purpose-specific authorization |
The rule expressly includes (1) employer loan/advance repayment or payroll-overpayment recovery; (2) employer merchandise or uniforms; (3) medical, accident, disability, retirement, or insurance premiums other than workers' compensation/unemployment; and (4) employer-provided deferred compensation or investment plans (OAC 380:30-1-7(d)). It uses 'including' rather than expressly calling the list exclusive |
Allowed only by a written, pre-signed agreement and only to 'compensate the employer for breakage or loss of merchandise, inventory shortage, or cash shortage caused by the employee; where the employee was the sole party responsible for the cash or items damaged or lost, at the time the damage or loss occurred' (OAC 380:30-1-7(d)(5), (e)). A shared-till or shared-access shortage does not qualify; the rule states no criminal-charge exception and no post-acquittal repayment duty |
Loans and advances (money transferred with a repayment provision) are recovered through the same signed agreement (OAC 380:30-1-7(d)(1), (e)). Overpayments: the employer may recover by lump-sum cash or a payroll-deduction agreement 'in a lump sum or in installments over a term not to exceed the length of the term in which the erroneous payments were made,' with the employee electing the method in writing (OAC 380:30-1-11(a)-(b)). On termination, any remaining overpayment balance is an offset to final wages (380:30-1-11(c); 40 O.S. § 165.3) |
Each payday the employer must give the employee 'a brief itemized statement of any and all deductions' (40 O.S. § 165.2). The Act and rules state no advance-notice-of-change requirement, no employee revocation right, and no deduction-specific wage floor; the deduction rules are issued under the Protection of Labor Act and the Oklahoma Minimum Wage Act, and federal minimum-wage law sets the general floor. Rights under the Act cannot be waived 'because of any contract to the contrary' (§ 165.2) |
The Commissioner may use an administrative wage proceeding and a final order may be recorded and collected as a money judgment (40 O.S. § 165.7); an employee may sue for unpaid wages and liquidated damages (§ 165.9). Section 165.3's 2%-per-day damages, capped at unpaid wages, apply when employment terminates and the employer willfully withholds undisputed final wages. Statutory violations are misdemeanors (§ 165.8); OAC 380:30-1-14 adds employee attorney fees and costs on a rule violation |
| Oregon verified 2026-07-13 | ORS 652.610(3) governs deductions from Oregon wages; ORS 652.615 creates the deduction-specific private remedy. Current 2025 Edition text includes 2025 ch. 235 changes effective Jan. 1, 2026 requiring new-hire/annual explanations of earnings and deductions under ORS 652.610(4)-(5). BOLI administers the wage rules |
Allowed when required by law, including taxes and garnishments or authorized related fees (ORS 652.610(3)(a)); qualifying collective-bargaining deductions are also recognized. Separate subject laws control their amounts |
Employee-benefit deductions require voluntary written authorization and entry in the employer's books; another written authorization may direct money to a recipient other than the employer (ORS 652.610(3)). A signature is invalid for a category the statute prohibits. The statute does not supply a general revocation timetable |
Private-benefit items such as health insurance, optional meals/lodging, raingear, gloves, hats, and personal purchases may be deducted when voluntarily authorized in writing and recorded; charitable contributions may be authorized when the employer is not the ultimate recipient. Required job items are not employee-benefit deductions |
Prohibited even with a signed authorization: till shortages, bad checks, deposits for equipment, breakage, loss, theft, negligent property damage, and required uniforms, tools, or transportation. BOLI states the employer may discipline or pursue reimbursement through court, but may not use payroll self-help |
A private employer may not deduct a wage overpayment unless a collective-bargaining agreement specifically authorizes it. A qualifying cash loan made solely for the employee's benefit may be deducted from final wages only under a voluntarily signed loan agreement, subject to the garnishment limit and statutory record requirements (ORS 652.610(3)(e)); the 2026 overpayment procedure in ORS 652.625 is for public employers only |
Every payment needs an itemized statement identifying deductions; electronic delivery requires express agreement and the ability to print/store it. Since Jan. 1, 2026, employers must give new hires an accessible explanation of earnings/deductions and review/update it annually (ORS 652.610(4)-(5)). Required items cannot be payroll-deducted; a separate purchase cannot reduce earnings below the applicable wage rate |
ORS 652.615 creates a private action for an ORS 652.610(3) violation for actual damages or $200, whichever is greater, with discretionary prevailing-party attorney's fees. A violation of ORS 652.610 is a Class D violation (§ 652.990(8)); BOLI may assess up to $1,000 for subsection (4) notice violations and $500 for subsection (5) annual-review violations (§ 652.900(1)) |
| Pennsylvania verified 2026-07-13 | Wage Payment and Collection Law (Act 329 of 1961) §§ 2.1, 3; 34 Pa. Code §§ 9.1-.2. Covers private employers broadly; wages include earnings plus agreed fringe benefits/wage supplements |
Deductions provided by law, including Social Security, federal/local income or wage taxes, occupation-privilege taxes, and court-ordered deductions (§ 3(a); 34 Pa. Code § 9.1(8)); lawful labor-organization charges also authorized (§ 9.1(9)) |
Writing required for many listed categories; some also permit a CBA. The regulation states no general signature, amount, frequency, electronic-form, revocation, or retention formula. Unlisted written deductions require Department approval under § 9.1(13) |
Enumerated employee-convenience categories: welfare/pension and group insurance, thrift/stock plans, personal savings and bonds, charity, local development, labor charges, bona fide loans, and employee purchases/rent/services (§ 9.1(1)-(12)) |
No general shortage, breakage, damage, theft, or employer-property-loss category. § 9.1(11) permits employee purchases or replacements from the employer only with written authorization or a CBA; other written deductions need Department approval (§ 9.1(13)) |
Express overpayment recovery only for employee welfare/pension plans (§ 9.1(1), (3)); bona fide employer-loan repayment allowed with written authorization given when or after the loan (§ 9.1(10)). No separate general wage-overpayment or advance schedule |
No deduction-specific revocation or retention period. An employer-required or employer-authorized work expense/charge may not reduce wages below the applicable Pennsylvania minimum wage (§ 9.2) |
Direct civil action for unpaid wages/liquidated damages; reasonable attorney's fees; 3-year limitations period (§ 9.1). If statutory triggers are met and no good-faith dispute exists, liquidated damages are 25% of wages due or $500, whichever is greater (§ 10) |
| Rhode Island verified 2026-07-13 | R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 28-14-1, 28-14-3.2. General rule covers wages owed to employees permitted to work in Rhode Island; independent contractors are excluded |
No employee approval needed for deductions authorized by federal/state law or court order (§ 28-14-3.2(a)). Majority written request in a certified unit makes union-dues deduction/remittance mandatory (§ 28-14-3) |
Employer must first obtain written or electronic employee approval (§ 28-14-3.2(a)); listed individual-benefit deductions require the employee's written request (§ 28-14-10(b)) |
CBA legal-service and pension/welfare/vacation/annuity/insurance plans; written-request union, health-plan, charity, U.S.-obligation/stock-plan, pension, insurance, credit-union, similar non-debt, and voluntary-vanpool payments (§ 28-14-10) |
Never authorized by consent: spoilage, breakage, shortages, losses, or fines/penalties for tardiness, misconduct, or quitting without notice (§ 28-14-3.2(a)) |
No special payroll-recovery schedule in the cited wage-deduction provisions; ordinary prior written/electronic approval controls. In an unpaid-wage suit, a signed writing permits loan/advance setoff, while damage, rent, and ordinary debt setoffs are barred (§ 28-14-24) |
Start-of-employment signed-receipt notice must list possible deductions; every payday record identifies deductions and their basis; payroll records kept 3 years (§§ 28-14-2.1, 28-14-12). No stated revocation rule. Minimum wage: $16 now; $17 on Jan. 1, 2027 (§ 28-12-3) |
Unauthorized deduction: treble amount payable to employee (§ 28-14-3.2(b)). DLT route may add 12% interest, fees/costs, and up to 2x civil penalty split with employee; private action within 3 years may recover wages, compensatory damages, up to 2x liquidated damages, fees/costs (§§ 28-14-19, 28-14-19.2) |
| South Carolina verified 2026-07-13 | South Carolina Payment of Wages Act, S.C. Code §§ 41-10-10 to -110; deductions are governed by §§ 41-10-30(A), -40(C), with remedies in § 41-10-80. The chapter applies to all South Carolina employers, including government employers; only § 41-10-30 is inapplicable to private-home domestic labor and employers that had fewer than five employees at all times during the preceding 12 months (§§ 41-10-10(1), -20) |
No employer notice is needed when the employer is 'required or permitted' to withhold or divert wages by state or federal law (§ 41-10-40(C)); taxes, support withholding, and garnishment operate under their separate laws |
The Act does not require the employee's signature or consent. For a deduction not authorized by law, the employer must give written notification of its amount and terms under § 41-10-30(A); notice at hiring may be delivered individually or by conspicuous posting, and a later change must be in writing at least 7 calendar days before it takes effect (§§ 41-10-30(A), -40(C)) |
No closed list. The employer may use the written-notice route for a deduction whose amount and terms are disclosed; § 41-10-30(A) expressly includes payments to insurance programs as an example. The statute supplies no separate employee-benefit, purchase, dues, charity, meal, or lodging categories |
No special shortage, breakage, damage, theft, uniform, tool, or unreturned-property rule. A payroll deduction for an employer loss is lawful under this chapter only if another state or federal law permits it or the employer gave the written notice of amount and terms required by §§ 41-10-30(A) and -40(C); the Act states no fault finding, valuation procedure, or criminal-charge exception |
No special overpayment, wage-advance, or employer-loan recovery procedure. Unless another law permits the withholding, payroll recovery remains subject to the same written notice of amount and terms and the 7-day rule for a change (§§ 41-10-30(A), -40(C)); disputed wages conceded due must still be paid unconditionally (§ 41-10-60) |
Notice at hiring may be written to the employee or conspicuously posted; a deduction change generally requires 7 calendar days' advance written notice (§ 41-10-30(A)). The employer must retain payday wage-and-deduction records for 3 years and give an itemized gross-pay-and-deductions statement each pay period (§ 41-10-30(B)-(C)). The Act states no employee revocation right, authorization-retention rule, or deduction-specific wage floor |
On a written complaint, the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation may investigate and seek informal resolution (§ 41-10-70). A § 41-10-30 violation draws a warning for the first offense and up to $100 for each later offense; each § 41-10-40 violation carries up to $100 (§ 41-10-80(A)-(B)). For failure to pay wages due under § 41-10-40, the employee may sue within 3 years for 3 times the unpaid wages plus costs and reasonable attorney's fees (§ 41-10-80(C)) |
| South Dakota verified 2026-07-13 | No general private-sector deduction statute. SDCL ch. 60-11 governs cash-wage payment; §§ 60-11-8 to -23 cover broad employers but apply only to cash wages (§ 60-11-14). The closest deduction rule is disputed-wage § 60-11-13 |
Not addressed by a general ch. 60-11 exception list; taxes, support, garnishment, and other law-created deductions are governed outside this wage-dispute provision |
No general signature or authorization rule. In a wage dispute, the employer may subtract only an employer debt the employee concedes is due and must give written notice of the net conceded wages (§ 60-11-13) |
No state-law purpose list or general benefit-deduction authorization procedure in ch. 60-11 |
No general shortage/damage category rule. A disputed-pay offset reaches only debt the employee concedes (§ 60-11-13); final wages may be held until employer property is returned (§§ 60-11-10, -11). Employer-required medical-exam/record costs may not be charged (§ 60-11-2) |
No separate overpayment, advance, or loan-recovery procedure. Section 60-11-13 permits a wage-dispute offset only for an amount the employee concedes is owed; acceptance of the net payment does not release the disputed balance |
Written notice applies only when wages are disputed (§ 60-11-13); no general revocation or retention rule. Covered non-tipped wage floor is $11.85/hour in 2026, and an agreement to work for less is ineffective (§§ 60-11-3, -4) |
DLR investigates §§ 60-11-8 to -23 (§ 60-11-17). Oppressive, fraudulent, or malicious refusal to pay supports double damages (§ 60-11-7); intentional refusal to pay due wages on demand is a Class 2 misdemeanor (§ 60-11-15) |
| Tennessee verified 2026-07-13 | Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-2-110 governs employer-debt offsets from wages; ch. 2 applies to workers who meet § 50-2-111's 20-factor employee test and excludes specified leased/owner-operator motor carriers. 'Wages' include commissions, bonuses, incentive rewards, and tips |
Section 50-2-110 does not catalog taxes, support withholding, garnishments, or other law-required deductions; those operate under their separate legal authority. Its procedure addresses an employer's own claimed debt |
Before any advance, loan, or approved personal card charge, employee must sign an agreement allowing wage offset; employer must possess a copy when offset occurs (§ 50-2-110(a)(1)-(2)). A later generic acknowledgment does not satisfy that timing |
No employee-benefit category list in § 50-2-110. Current state guidance generally points to a written agreement for voluntary paycheck deductions, while insurance, retirement, union, and similar deductions remain subject to their separate governing law or plan |
Section 50-2-110 does not name shortages, breakage, damage, theft, uniforms, tools, or unreturned property. A signature alone does not create the statutory offset route unless the claimed debt arose from the pre-agreed wage advance, money loan, or approved personal business-card charge |
Pre-agreed wage advances, employer loans, and approved personal corporate-card charges may be offset through § 50-2-110. An inadvertent payroll overpayment has no separate statutory recovery route; without the required pre-transaction agreement, payroll self-help is not authorized by this section |
Employer must give written notice 14 days before payday stating the debt, planned offset, and affidavit right. Employee has 7 days after receiving notice to send sworn affidavit to employer and labor department. No general revocation rule; § 50-2-114 preserves the federal-minimum-wage floor for covered intrastate employers |
Timely sworn affidavit bars the offset; employer may sue civilly for the alleged debt (§ 50-2-110(b)). Section 50-2-110 states no employee damages multiplier, fee shifting, or separate civil penalty; Tennessee Labor Standards publishes the wage-deduction guidance |
| Texas verified 2026-07-13 | Texas Payday Act, Tex. Lab. Code ch. 61; § 61.018 deduction rule; 40 Tex. Admin. Code §§ 821.27-.29. Covers employers with ≥1 employee; excludes government entities, independent contractors, and specified close relatives (§§ 61.001, 61.003) |
Allowed under a competent-court order or state/federal law; 'law' includes statutes, codes, agency rules, and regulations (§ 61.018; 40 TAC § 821.28(a)) |
Written authorization for a lawful purpose; must be purpose-specific, create a reasonable expectation of the amount, and clearly say the deduction comes from wages. A signed handbook acknowledgment may qualify only with specific deduction and agreement language (§ 821.28(b)-(c)) |
No exclusive benefit list; a benefit, purchase, or other deduction may use the written-authorization route if its purpose is lawful and the withheld money is applied to that authorized purpose (§ 61.018; § 821.28(a), (d)) |
No separate shortage, damage, or property-loss fault standard in § 61.018/§ 821.28; the writing must specifically identify the lawful purpose and the responsibility or liability accepted, with a reasonable expectation of amount |
No separate overpayment section. Employer loans follow § 61.018 and may not exceed the per-paycheck amount agreed in the loan writing or later authorization; wage advances may be recouped from the next paycheck after notice and agreement, otherwise § 61.018 controls (§§ 821.27, 821.29) |
General rule states no revocation or retention period; authorization must communicate purpose and expected amount. Advance recovery needs notice and agreement; employer-loan repayment may count toward applicable minimum and overtime wages (§§ 821.27(b), 821.29(b)) |
Verified TWC wage claim due within 180 days after wages became due; examiner may order unpaid wages. Employer bad faith can add an administrative penalty up to the lesser of the wages at issue or $1,000 (§§ 61.051-.053) |
| Utah verified 2026-07-13 | Utah Payment of Wages Act, Utah Code §§ 34-28-3 (deductions and withholding), 34-28-9 (Labor Commission enforcement), 34-28-9.5 (private action), 34-28-12 (misdemeanor). Section 34-28-3(6) is a closed 'may not withhold or divert ... unless' list. The chapter excludes government employers, farm/dairy/agricultural work, domestic service, and 'any other employment where an agreement exists ... providing for different terms of payment' (§ 34-28-1); 'employer' tracks 29 U.S.C. § 203 |
Allowed when the employer 'is required to withhold or divert the wages by' a court order or state or federal law (§ 34-28-3(6)(a)): taxes, garnishment, and support run under those separate regimes. A wage reduction as a contribution to an employer-established 401(k), 403(b), 408, 408A, or 457 plan is separately permitted, subject to the employee's election right (§ 34-28-3(6)(d), (8)) |
Any other deduction requires that 'the employee expressly authorizes the deduction in writing' (§ 34-28-3(6)(b)). The statute demands an express, written authorization but states no separate signature-format, amount, frequency, or advance-notice formula; for a retirement-plan election the employer must give written notice of the election right and honor a change within 30 days (§ 34-28-3(8)) |
The Act does not enumerate insurance, dues, or savings categories. It permits any purpose the employee expressly authorizes in writing (§ 34-28-3(6)(b)), plus employer-established retirement-plan contributions (§ 34-28-3(6)(d)). The Labor Commission's wage-claim rules, adopted under § 34-28-9(1)(b), set the criteria for particular deductions |
No shortage-, breakage-, or damage-specific deduction door. An employer may recover a loss or claimed debt from wages only through the employee's express written authorization (§ 34-28-3(6)(b)) or an offset a hearing officer or administrative law judge finds warranted on the evidence (§ 34-28-3(6)(c)). Otherwise § 34-28-3(7) bars requiring the employee to 'rebate, refund, offset, or return' wages; the employer's remedy is a civil action, which § 34-28-3(9) expressly preserves |
The Act creates no special overpayment, advance, or employer-loan recovery schedule. Recovery by payroll deduction still needs the employee's express written authorization (§ 34-28-3(6)(b)) or an ALJ/hearing-officer-warranted offset (§ 34-28-3(6)(c)); absent either, § 34-28-3(7) prohibits a forced refund or offset and § 34-28-3(9) leaves the employer to a civil action |
On each payday a deduction is made, the employer must furnish 'a statement showing the total amount of each deduction' (§ 34-28-3(4)). A retirement-plan election right must be disclosed in writing and a change honored within 30 days (§ 34-28-3(8)). The Payment of Wages Act sets no deduction minimum-wage floor or authorization-retention period of its own; the separate Utah Minimum Wage Act (Title 34, Chapter 40) governs the minimum wage, and Labor Commission rules under § 34-28-9(1)(b) set deduction criteria |
A wage claim of $50 to $10,000 is filed with the Division of Antidiscrimination and Labor within one year of when the wages were earned (§ 34-28-9(1)); the Division may assess a penalty of 5% of unpaid wages per day for up to 20 days (§ 34-28-9(2)). A claim over $10,000 (or aggregated above it) may go straight to court, which may award actual damages, an amount equal to 2.5% of unpaid wages per day for up to 20 days after a final order, and the § 34-28-5(1)(c) separation penalty (§ 34-28-9.5). A violation of the chapter is a class B misdemeanor (§ 34-28-12) |
| Vermont verified 2026-07-13 | 21 V.S.A. ch. 5 and Vermont Minimum Wage Rules. Wage-payment definitions reach employers with 1+ employees (§ 341); minimum-wage deduction rules generally apply at 2+ and exclude listed workers including agriculture and domestic service (§ 383) |
State- or federal-law-authorized deductions are permitted; the VDOL rule names state/federal taxes and child support as examples. Their separate amounts and procedures are outside this survey |
Employer-provided goods/services: written authorization or sufficiently documented intent to repay; deduction must be otherwise lawful and no more than the agreed amount. Health/retirement contributions require written authorization; required-apparel cost requires express written authorization |
Written-authorized health-insurance and retirement contributions; regulated goods/services supplied by the employer. Section 384 identifies board, lodging, apparel, rent, utilities, and other usual items/services, subject to the rule and current apparel limits |
No deduction for claimed damages or cash-register shortages. No required-apparel care, cleaning, or maintenance deduction; required-apparel cost needs express written authorization, cannot cross the wage floor, add administrative fees, or violate a CBA (§ 385(4)) |
No special overpayment, wage-advance, or employer-loan recovery schedule in the cited provisions. A deduction that fits the goods/services rule still needs authorization or documented repayment intent, must be lawful, cannot exceed the agreed amount, and cannot cross the wage floor |
Each wage statement must fully itemize deductions. No general advance-notice, revocation-timing, or authorization-retention rule appears in the cited provisions. Covered pay after ordinary deductions must remain at least $14.42/hour in 2026 |
VDOL wage claim (including improper deductions), generally within 2 years (§ 342a). Willful withholding can add up to 2x unpaid wages, split equally between employee and Commissioner. Section 347 civil forfeiture is twice the improperly unpaid value plus costs/fees while wages remain unpaid; § 345 fine up to $5,000 for § 342 violations |
| Virginia verified 2026-07-13 | Va. Code § 40.1-29 (Title 40.1, Ch. 3, Protection of Employees), as amended by 2026 c. 1040 (HB 238). 'Employer' has the Fair Labor Standards Act meaning (29 U.S.C. § 203); 'wages' is defined broadly (hourly, salary, overtime, commissions, tips, bonuses). Enforced by the Commissioner of Labor and Industry, the Attorney General, or a private/collective civil action. The deduction rule is general, not limited by employer size, industry, or to final wages |
Withholding is allowed without authorization only 'for payroll, wage or withholding taxes or in accordance with law' (§ 40.1-29(D)): taxes, court-ordered garnishment, and child support. Anything else requires the employee's written and signed authorization |
Any deduction that is not a tax or otherwise required by law needs 'the written and signed authorization of the employee' (§ 40.1-29(D)). Virginia does not enumerate categories, so any lawful purpose may be deducted with a signed authorization; the statute requires the authorization be written and signed but does not itself prescribe its wording. Separately, an employer may not require an employee (except executive personnel) to sign a contract or agreement providing for the forfeiture of wages for time worked as a condition of employment (§ 40.1-29(E)) |
No statutory list of permitted benefit categories. Insurance premiums, retirement contributions, union dues, savings plans, charitable gifts, and similar voluntary items are all permitted on the same footing: they are lawful if the employee gives a written and signed authorization (§ 40.1-29(D)). The purpose is limited only by the general law and the anti-forfeiture rule, not by an enumerated catalog |
No special provision for shortages, breakage, damage, theft, or unreturned property. Such a deduction is a withholding of 'part of the wages,' so it is unlawful unless it is 'in accordance with law' or the employee gives a written and signed authorization (§ 40.1-29(D)). An employer also cannot make a mandatory wage-forfeiture agreement a condition of employment (§ 40.1-29(E)). There is no payroll self-help for employer losses without the employee's signed authorization |
Virginia has no special overpayment, advance, or loan-recovery statute. Recovering an overpayment, advance, or loan is a withholding of part of the wages, so it needs either a legal basis or the employee's written and signed authorization under § 40.1-29(D). The statute sets no lookback period, percentage cap, or notice schedule for such a recovery; the ordinary written-authorization rule controls |
Disclosure: every regular paystub (or online accounting) must show 'the amount and purpose of any deductions,' with enough detail to see how gross and net pay were calculated, and the employer must keep those records at least three years (§ 40.1-29(D)). The statute sets no general revocation timetable or wage-floor formula for authorized deductions; its substantive limits are the written-authorization requirement and the anti-forfeiture rule (§ 40.1-29(E)), with minimum-wage law applying separately |
The Commissioner may investigate and 'seek and collect any wages unlawfully withheld' (§ 40.1-29(G)); the Attorney General may sue (§ 40.1-29(N)); and an employee may bring an individual or collective civil action (§ 40.1-29(K)). Remedies include all wages due plus an equal amount as liquidated damages and 8% interest (§ 40.1-29(H)), rising to TRIPLE the wages due for a knowing violation, plus reasonable attorney fees and costs (§ 40.1-29(K)); a civil penalty up to $1,000 per violation (§ 40.1-29(I)); and criminal liability: a Class 1 misdemeanor if under $10,000, a Class 6 felony if $10,000 or more or on a repeat (§ 40.1-29(F)). The limitations period is three years (§ 40.1-29(M)). For actions commenced on or after July 1, 2026, a new good-faith defense bars additional damages and penalties if the employer had reasonable grounds and cures the violation within 14 days of notice (§ 40.1-29(P), added by 2026 c. 1040) |
| Washington verified 2026-07-13 | Washington's deduction rules are administrative: WAC 296-126-028 (deductions during an ongoing employment relationship) and WAC 296-126-025 (deductions from final wages), adopted by the Department of Labor and Industries under chapters 49.12, 49.46, 49.48, and 49.52 RCW. The statutory anchor is the anti-rebate law, RCW 49.52.050, with civil double damages in RCW 49.52.070. The rules cover Washington employers and employees under ch. 49.12 RCW (with the WAC 296-126-001 exclusions, such as agricultural and domestic labor) |
Allowed, and may reduce pay below the minimum wage, if the deduction is required by state or federal law, for medical, surgical, or hospital care or service, or to satisfy a court order, judgment, wage attachment, bankruptcy, or child-support payroll notice (WAC 296-126-028(1); WAC 296-126-025(1)). No separate employee authorization is needed for these |
During employment, a voluntary deduction is lawful only when the employee 'expressly authorizes the deduction in writing and in advance for a lawful purpose for the benefit of the employee' (WAC 296-126-028(2)): note the three limits: in writing, in advance, and for the employee's benefit. From the final paycheck, benefit-plan and creditor/third-party deductions may instead be agreed orally or in writing in advance (WAC 296-126-025(2)). The employer bears the burden of proving any agreement, so L&I recommends every agreement be written and signed (WAC 296-126-025(4)) |
No closed list, but the deduction must benefit the employee: employee purchases of the employer's goods or services (at no more than the customer price), employee loans at reasonable interest, pension/medical/dental/other benefit-plan contributions, and payments to a creditor or third party for the employee's benefit (WAC 296-126-028(2); WAC 296-126-025(2)). A hard overlay applies: 'Neither the employer nor any person acting in the interest of the employer can derive any financial profit or benefit from any of the deductions' (WAC 296-126-028(3)); reasonable loan interest does not count as a benefit (WAC 296-126-028(4)) |
This is Washington's outlier. During ongoing employment, deductions for cash-register shortages, a customer's bad check or card, walkouts, breakage, or lost/damaged equipment are NOT allowed at all: even if the employee had sole access to the register (WAC 296-126-028 examples). Only from the FINAL paycheck, and only for an incident that occurred in that final pay period, may an employer deduct for: a bad check/card accepted against known procedures; a cash shortage where the employee had sole access and did the shift's cash accounting; a shortage, walkout, breakage, or loss caused by the employee's dishonest or willful act; or theft where intent to deprive is shown and the employer filed a police report (WAC 296-126-025(3)). These final-pay loss deductions may not reduce final gross wages below the minimum wage |
Wage advances or draws and employer loans may be recovered by payroll deduction under a written, in-advance agreement, and a loan or advance balance may be taken from the final paycheck if the agreement so provides (WAC 296-126-028(2); WAC 296-126-025 examples). The deduction rules create no special no-consent overpayment-recovery route, so recovering an overpayment during employment follows the same written, in-advance authorization rule (or a 'required by law' basis), and the no-profit rule still applies |
Authorization must be given 'in advance' and, during employment, in writing (WAC 296-126-028(2)); the rules set no fixed revocation timetable. Records: the employer 'must identify and record all wage deductions openly and clearly in employee payroll records' (WAC 296-126-028(5); WAC 296-126-025(5)), echoing RCW 49.52.050(4). Wage floor: law-required, medical, court-ordered, and employee-benefit authorized deductions MAY reduce pay below the minimum wage, but the narrow final-paycheck employer-loss deductions may NOT (WAC 296-126-025(3)) |
Collecting a wage rebate, willfully underpaying wages owed, or failing to record a deduction openly is a misdemeanor (RCW 49.52.050). A willful violation of RCW 49.52.050(1) or (2) makes the employer liable in a civil action for TWICE the amount unlawfully rebated or withheld as exemplary damages, plus costs of suit and reasonable attorney fees, unless the employee knowingly submitted to the violation (RCW 49.52.070). The Department of Labor and Industries also enforces wage-payment complaints under ch. 49.48 RCW |
| West Virginia verified 2026-07-13 | West Virginia Wage Payment and Collection Act, W. Va. Code §§ 21-5-1 to -19, especially §§ 21-5-1(g), 21-5-3, 21-5-4(f), and 21-5-9; implementing rule, W. Va. Code R. tit. 42, ser. 5. It broadly covers employees of employers doing business in West Virginia and excludes properly classified independent contractors (§ 21-5-1(b), (m)-(n)) |
An 'authorized deduction' includes an amount required by law to be withheld (§ 21-5-1(g)); 42 CSR 5-3.13 also recognizes a valid wage-garnishment order. These law-created deductions do not require a wage assignment. An amount lawfully deducted but not paid to the designated creditor or plan becomes an illegal deduction (42 CSR 5-9.6) |
Listed benefit deductions require the employee's written authorization but no prescribed form (42 CSR 5-3.13, 5-9.5). Any other voluntary deduction ordinarily requires the Commissioner's Assignment of Future Wages form before deduction: written employee assignment, employer's written acceptance, total debt stated, no more than one year, and an express statement that 75% of periodic wages is always exempt (§ 21-5-3(f); 42 CSR 5-9.1-.2) |
With written authorization, the rule recognizes union or club dues, pension plans, payroll savings, credit unions, charities, insurance, hospitalization or medical plans, and similar plans; the employer must remit the money to the authorized plan (42 CSR 5-3.13, 5-9.5-.6). For workers covered by the state minimum-wage law, separate credits permit regulated meal and living-quarter amounts, but no minimum-wage credit for required uniforms (§ 21-5C-4; 42 CSR 8 guidance) |
Shortages, breakage, damage, theft, and similar employer claims are not listed authorized deductions, so payroll self-help ordinarily requires a valid wage assignment and is capped at 25% of net wages. At separation, § 21-5-4(f) separately permits withholding replacement cost for unreturned employer property only if it was business-use property worth more than $100, the employee signed a contemporaneous itemized agreement, and the employer gives written notice and up to 10 business days to return it; a timely amount dispute goes to interest-bearing escrow |
For an ordinary private employee, the Act gives no special overpayment, advance, or employer-loan deduction route; repayment through payroll therefore uses a valid wage assignment, leaving 75% of net wages exempt. A state employee's wage overpayment is the exception: the employee may voluntarily authorize a written assignment of as much as 75% of periodic wages, leaving 25% exempt (§ 21-5-3(g); 42 CSR 5-9.3) |
Every pay period containing a deduction requires an itemized deduction statement (§ 21-5-9(4); 42 CSR 5-7.3), and payroll/employment records must be kept at least five years (42 CSR 5-5.1). An ordinary wage assignment lasts no more than one year and leaves 75% of net wages exempt; the Act states no general at-will revocation right. Separately, covered employees must receive the state minimum wage, currently $8.75, subject only to authorized credits such as regulated board and lodging (§§ 21-5C-2, 21-5C-4) |
The Division of Labor investigates an illegal-deduction request for assistance (42 CSR 5-10). An employee or the Commissioner may sue for unpaid wages, and a prevailing plaintiff may receive costs and reasonable attorney fees (§ 21-5-12); § 21-5-6 adds legal interest after a five-day refusal to settle and pay as required. If an unlawful final-wage withholding also violates § 21-5-4, two-times liquidated damages may apply, but the employee generally must first make the § 21-5-4a written demand and allow the seven-day cure period |
| Wisconsin verified 2026-07-13 | Wis. Stat. § 103.455 governs deductions from wages due or earned for defective or faulty workmanship, lost or stolen property, or property damage. It applies to employees who are not independent contractors; it is not a general catalog of all payroll deductions |
Section 103.455 does not regulate taxes, support withholding, garnishment, or other law-created deductions. Wisconsin DWD identifies taxes as an example of an allowed deduction, but those separate regimes remain outside this employer-loss rule |
For faulty-work or employer-property loss, employee consent must be in writing after the incident and before the deduction; a blanket pre-loss authorization is invalid (§ 103.455; DWD guidance). The section supplies no general written-authorization form for unrelated benefit or purchase deductions |
No closed employee-benefit or purchase list appears in § 103.455. Wisconsin DWD gives insurance premiums as an example of an allowed deduction; separate plan, wage-agreement, and minimum-wage rules still apply |
Deduction for faulty work, loss, theft, or damage requires one of three routes: post-incident written employee authorization; a fault determination by employer and employee-designated representative; or a competent-court guilt/liability finding. The fault standard is negligence, carelessness, or willful and intentional conduct (§ 103.455) |
Section 103.455 creates no special notice, installment cap, or dispute process for overpayments, advances, or employer loans. Its official annotation states mistaken overpayments were not earned wages protected by the section; that does not itself create a general payroll self-help procedure |
Loss authorization must come after each incident and before deduction; blanket authorization is invalid. No general revocation or record-retention rule appears in § 103.455. After deductions, pay remains subject to Wisconsin's applicable minimum wage under §§ 104.02 and 104.035 |
For a deduction or credit contrary to § 103.455, employer is liable for twice the amount in the employee's civil action; contrary agreements are void. DWD becomes the third determining party if employer and employee disagree, subject to court appeal; § 111.322(2m) anti-retaliation protections apply |
| Wyoming verified 2026-07-13 | Wyoming Labor Standards ch. 1, § 6 supplies an exclusive list of proper offsets from wages due an employee. W.S. § 27-4-104(a) separately addresses offsets from final wages; the agency claim rule reaches wages claimed under §§ 27-4-101, -104, or -507 |
Rule § 6 permits federal-tax and Social Security/FICA deductions, attachment, garnishment, and listed wage assignments. The amounts and procedures of those separate regimes are outside this survey |
Union/benefit and financial-institution deductions require written authorization. Employer goods/services, required tools/equipment/uniforms, assigned items, advances/loans, and specified expenses require category-specific written acknowledgment plus the rule's other conditions |
Written-authorized union dues and health, welfare, insurance, retirement, or other benefit-plan contributions; written-authorized financial-institution payments/deposits; employer goods/services sold in the ordinary course; acknowledged optional tuition, relocation, and training expenses |
Negligence/theft/fraud: fault and damage amount judicially determined, employment-related, and no double recovery; if insured, no more than deductible or $250, whichever is less. Cash shortages need start-of-employment responsibility, written opening/closing counts, and sole access. Tools/uniforms and unreturned assigned items need possession/receipt acknowledgments |
Cash advances, loans, and optional tuition/relocation/training expenses: made during employment and receipt evidenced by written acknowledgment. No express clerical-overpayment category or recovery schedule appears; § 104(a)'s final-wage offset language remains subject to § 6's exclusive categories |
Benefit and financial deductions terminate on written revocation. A disputed offset requires written notice of conceded wages and unconditional timely payment; every offset must be itemized. No general authorization-retention rule or express deduction-specific floor in § 6; Wyoming's covered state minimum is $5.15/hour, while federal law may require more |
DWS wage claim, investigation, hearing, and collection; nonbankruptcy agency claim cap is 2 months' wages per employee per claim (§ 27-4-502). Final-wage civil suit can add 18% annual interest, reasonable attorney fee, and costs (§ 27-4-104(b)); order noncompliance up to $200/day; retaliation can yield lost wages plus an equal liquidated amount |
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