WEST virginia legislature

2019 regular session

SECOND ENGROSSMENT

Committee Substitute

for

House Bill 2049

By Delegate Foster, Porterfield, Waxman, Kessinger, Cowles, Hardy, Fast and Jennings

[Introduced January 9, 2019; Referred
to the Committee on Industry and Labor then the Judiciary.]

A BILL to amend and reenact §21-5-7 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to a prime contractor’s responsibility for wages and benefits of employees of a subcontractor; requiring notice to prime contractor within 100 days of the missing wages becoming payable; instituting a one year statute of limitations; and requiring employee to provide verifiable proof to substantiate missing wages.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

CHAPTER 21. LABOR.

ARTICLE 5. WAGE PAYMENT AND COLLECTION.

§21-5-7.  Prime contractor’s responsibility for wages and benefits.

(a) Whenever any person, firm or corporation shall contract with another for the performance of any work which the prime contracting person has undertaken to perform for another, the prime contractor shall become civilly liable to employees engaged in the performance of work under such contract for the payment of wages and fringe benefits, exclusive of liquidated damages as provided in subsection (e), section four of this article, to the extent that the employer of such employee fails to pay such wages and fringe benefits:.

(b)  Any individual or entity seeking redress pursuant to subsection (a) must:

(1) Notify the prime contractor, by certified mail, of the missing wages or fringe benefits within 100 days of the date the wages or fringe benefits become payable to the employee;

(2) Commence the action within one year of the date the employee delivered notice to the prime contractor pursuant to subsection (b)(1); and

(3) Produce verifiable proof, such as a pay stub or bank statement, to substantiate the missing wages or fringe benefits

Provided, That such employees have exhausted (4) Exhaust all feasible remedies contained in this article against such employer, but Provided, That if the prime contractor has failed to notify the commissioner as required by section sixteen of this article, then the employee shall not be required to exhaust any remedies against the employer: Provided, however, That such employer shall become civilly liable to such prime contrsactor for any sum of money paid by him or her under this section.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide notice to a prime contractor, within 100 days, of a subcontractor’s failure to pay wages or fringe benefits.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.