Third-Party Complaints

Below is a detailed list of information that is helpful for a third-party complainant to contact the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) on behalf of someone else. While you may not be able to provide all the information listed, the more information you make available the better able WHD will be to address concerns raised.

• Your name
• Your address, if you have a separate mailing address also have that available
• Your telephone number, or a telephone number where you can be contacted and the best days and times to call you
• Your age and date of birth, if under 19
• Are you a current employee, a former employee, a representative of a current or former employee?

Employment Information

• How long have or did you work for your employer? When did you start? If you are no longer an employee, when did you leave?
• Are you classified as an employee or an independent contractor? Did you get an IRS Form-1099?
• What is your job or job title? What duties did you perform?
• Are you involved in any type of interstate transactions, such as shipping or receiving goods, producing goods, making telephone calls, processing credit cards, etc.?
• What is the problem? How long has the problem been occurring? Does this same situation apply to others, or just to you?

Payroll and Hours Worked

• How were you paid (salary, hourly, by piece or by job rate)? What is your rate of pay?
• How often are you paid (daily, weekly, every two weeks on the same day of the week, every other week, monthly, twice a month or semi-monthly)?
• Are there deductions from your pay for things other than federal and state taxes, social security or Medicare? i.e. uniforms, cash register shortages, breakage etc. (See Fact Sheet #16 on deductions)
• Are you paid by check, direct deposit or in cash?
• Do you have pay stubs or other documents that show the problem (for example, pay stubs that show you being paid less than the minimum wage)?
• How many hours do you work per week on average? (Fact Sheet # 22 on hours worked)
• Does your employer record your hours worked? Do you have a record of your hours worked?
• How are the records maintained? i.e. time cards punch in/out, time cards written, sign in/out sheet etc. Are the hours worked records an accurate reflection of the hours you worked? Do you perform work prior to or after signing in/out?

Employer Information

• Name of your employer, including a trade name
• Address of your employer (Number, Street, City, State, Zip Code)
• In what type of business is your employer involved? (Construction, retail store, manufacturing, restaurant, etc.)
• Does your employer have more than one location?
• If there is more than one location, can you identify other locations?
• Does your employer have a main office? Do you know where your employer’s main office is?
• About how many employees work for your employer? Does the employer employ youth under 18 years old?
• Do you know what your employer’s gross annual sales are? If not, can you estimate the approximate daily or weekly sales figures?