27-4-302 shall be liable to the employee or employees affected

27-4-302 shall be liable to the employee or employees affected in the amount of their unpaid wages, and in an additional equal amount as liquidated damages. Action to recover liability may be maintained in any court of competent jurisdiction by any one (1) or more employees for and in behalf of the employee or the employees and other employees similarly situated, and no agreement by the employee to work for less than the wage to which the employee is entitled under this act shall be a defense to any action.

(b) Upon receipt of a written claim by any employee of a violation of this act, the director shall process, investigate and determine the validity of the claim. The director shall have power to join various claims against the same employer in one (1) claim. If either the employer or employee is aggrieved by the director's determination, the aggrieved party may request a fair hearing. The aggrieved party must file a written request for hearing within fifteen (15) calendar days of receipt of the director's determination. Upon receipt of a timely submitted request for hearing, the director shall appoint an independent hearing officer to conduct the fair hearing between the employer and employee. The fair hearing shall be conducted pursuant to the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act. The hearing officer's determination shall constitute the director's final agency action. Upon a finding by the hearing officer that the claim is valid, the director shall order the employer to pay the amount of wages due plus an additional equal amount as liquidated damages. Where the employer failed to appeal an adverse determination to the district court and failed to comply with the director's order, the director shall refer the matter to the appropriate county attorney for enforcement of the director's order.

27-4-304. Penalty for violations.

Any employer who willfully violates any provision of this act, or who discharges or in any other manner discriminates against any employee because the employee has made any complaint to his employer, the director or any other person, or instituted, or caused to be instituted any proceeding under or related to this act, or has testified or is about to testify in the proceedings, shall, upon conviction by a court of competent jurisdiction, be punished by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500.00), by imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or both.

ARTICLE 4 - PREVAILING WAGES

27-4-401. Short title.

This act may be known and may be cited as the Wyoming Prevailing Wage Act of 1967.

27-4-402. Definitions.

(a) As used in this act:

(i) "Construction" includes construction, reconstruction, improvement, enlargement, alteration or repair of any public improvement fairly estimated to cost one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00) or more;

(ii) "Director" shall mean the director of the department or his designee;

(iii) "Prevailing hourly rate of wages" means the wages paid generally to and the associated customary and usual fringe benefit costs paid on behalf of workers engaged in work of a similar character;

(iv) Repealed By Laws 2001, Ch. 145, § 2.

(v) "Maintenance work" means the repair, but not the replacement, of existing facilities when the size, type or extent of the existing facilities is not thereby changed or increased;

(vi) "Public body" means the state of Wyoming or any officer, board or commission of the state;

(vii) "Public works" means all fixed works constructed for public use, whether or not done under public supervision or direction, or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds or assessment of property owners or rights users;  (viii) "Workmen" means laborers, workmen and mechanics employed directly upon the actual construction site by contractors or subcontractors or the public body;

(ix) "Locality" for public heavy, highway projects and public building projects means the following districts wherein the physical work is performed:

(A) For federal highway and construction projects:

(I) The entire state of Wyoming excluding any area defined as a metropolitan statistical area pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 3504(e)(3) and 31 U.S.C. 1104(d);

(II) Any area defined as a metropolitan statistical area pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 3504(e)(3) and 31 U.S.C. 1104(d).

(B) For state only heavy and highway projects, the entire state of Wyoming;

(C) For public building projects, the entire state of Wyoming.

(x) "Department" means the department of workforce services;

(xi) "This act" means W.S. 27-4-401 through 27-4-413.

27-4-403. Prevailing hourly wage on public works projects; transportation of materials; exception for trainees.

(a) Except as provided by subsection (c) of this section, not less than the prevailing hourly rate of wages for work of a similar character in the locality in which the work is performed, shall be paid to all workmen employed by or on behalf of any public body engaged in the construction of public works, exclusive of maintenance work. Only such workmen as are directly employed in actual construction work on the site of the building or construction job shall be deemed to be employed on public works.

(b) When the hauling of materials or equipment includes some phase of construction other than the mere transportation to the site of the construction, workmen engaged in the dual capacity shall be deemed employed directly on public works when such work shall be more than incidental to the regular duties of the hauling.

(c) Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, an employee employed pursuant to and registered in a training or an apprenticeship program approved by the United States department of labor or a training program approved by the department of transportation and the federal highway administration, except where specified by registered or approved training or apprenticeship programs, shall be paid as follows:

(i) During the first half of the training period, at a rate not less than sixty percent (60%) of the appropriate minimum journeyman's wage rate specified within the employment contract;

(ii) During the period commencing upon completion of the first half of the training program and ending upon completion of seventy-five percent (75%) of the program, at a rate not less than seventy-five percent (75%) of the appropriate minimum journeyman's wage rate specified within the employment contract;

(iii) During the remaining portion and until completion of the training program, at a rate not less than ninety percent (90%) of the appropriate minimum journeyman's wage rate specified within the employment contract.

27-4-404. Director to investigate complaints; rules and regulations.

Upon complaint of violation of this act or upon reasonable suspicion that a violation of this act has occurred, the director shall investigate, and shall institute actions for penalties herein prescribed when proven violations are considered by him to be intentional and willful in nature. The director may establish rules and regulations for the purpose of carrying out the purposes of this act.

27-4-405. Duty of public authority to ascertain wage rate for public works; requirement as to call for bids.

(a) Before any public body awards a contract for public works, it shall obtain from the department the prevailing hourly rate of wages in the locality in which the work is to be performed, for each craft or type of workman needed to execute the contract or project. The public body shall specify in the resolution or ordinance and in the call for bids for the contract, what the prevailing hourly rate of wages in the locality is for each craft or type of workman needed to execute the contract, and it shall be mandatory upon the contractor to whom the contract is awarded and upon any subcontractor under him, to pay not less than the specified rates to all workmen employed by them in the execution of the contract. The public body awarding the contract shall cause to be inserted in the contract a stipulation to the effect that not less than the prevailing hourly rate of wages as determined by the department pursuant to W.S. 27-4-406, or determined by the court on review, shall be paid to all workmen performing work under the contract. It shall also require in all the contractor's bonds that the contractor include such provision as will guarantee the faithful performance of the prevailing hourly wage clause as provided by the contract. The finding of the department specifying the prevailing hourly rate of wages in accordance with this subsection, shall be final for all purposes of the contract then being considered, unless reviewed under the provisions of this act. A public body doing public works directly shall comply with the prevailing hourly rate of wages portion of this subsection for each craft or type of workman so employed. In reviewing bids for public works contracts, the public body shall only award a bid preference in the percentage specified in W.S. 16-6-102(a) to any prospective contractor who participated, as certified by the department, in the department's wage survey for the period applicable to the contract being awarded.

(b) In determining prevailing hourly wage rates, the department shall ascertain and consider the applicable hourly wage rates established by collective bargaining agreements, if any, such hourly wage rates as are paid generally within the locality and the most current department hourly wage survey as adjusted in W.S. 27-4-406.

27-4-406. Wage rate to be filed with director and mailed to employers and certain employees.

(a) The department shall annually determine the prevailing hourly rate of wages within the state for all occupations, crafts or type of workers expected to be required for public works in the state. In carrying out this subsection, the department shall:

(i) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 109, § 2.  (ii) Provide for a moving average wage adjustment as defined in rules and regulations of the department;

(iii) Customize a survey for the construction trades.

(b) Upon determining the prevailing hourly rate of wages under subsection (a) of this section, the department shall provide notice of its determination to:

(i) The general public by publication in a newspaper of general circulation within each locality for which a prevailing wage rate is determined; and

(ii) Each state agency and, upon written request, to any employer or other person. Notice under this paragraph shall be made promptly by certified mail.

27-4-407. Objection to rates filed; hearing; ruling; judicial review.

(a) At any time within fifteen (15) days after publication and notification of wage determinations under W.S. 27-4-406, any affected person may object in writing to the determination or part thereof by filing a written notice with the director, stating the specific grounds of the objection. The written objection shall be a public record and available for inspection by any person who may be affected.

(b) Within ten (10) days of the receipt of the objection, the director shall set a date for a hearing on the objection. The date for the hearing shall be within thirty (30) days of the receipt of the objection. Written notice of the time and place of the hearing shall be given to the objectors at least five (5) days prior to the date set for the hearing.

(c) The director may hear each written objection separately or consolidate for hearing any two (2) or more written objections. At the hearing the department shall introduce in evidence the methodology it used and any other facts which were considered at the time of the original determination which formed the basis for its determination. The department or any objectors thereafter may introduce evidence which is material to the issues. In no case shall the department be required to disclose any payroll data or survey data which was used in making a determination under W.S. 27-4-406 which can be used to identify any individual employer.  (d) Within ten (10) days of the conclusion of the hearing, the director shall rule on the written objections and make a final determination as the evidence warrants. Immediately upon a final determination, the director shall serve a certified copy upon on all parties to the proceedings by personal service or by registered mail.

(e) The final decision of the director of the prevailing wages in the locality shall be subject to review in accordance with the provisions of the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act. All proceedings in any district court affecting a determination of the director shall have priority in hearing and determination over all other civil proceedings pending in the court, except election contests.

27-4-408. Director's finding final unless reviewed; payments in excess of prevailing rate not prohibited; hours of work not limited.

The findings of the director ascertaining and declaring the prevailing hourly rate of wages shall be final for the locality, unless reviewed as provided by law. Nothing in this act, however, shall be construed to prohibit the payment to any workman employed on any public work of a sum exceeding the prevailing hourly rate of wages. Nothing in this act shall be construed to limit the hours of work which may be performed by any workman in any particular period of time.

27-4-409. Hearing procedure.

The procedure before the director for hearing of objections shall be as provided in the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act.

27-4-410. Records of contractors.

The contractor and each subcontractor or the officer of the public body in charge of the project shall keep an accurate record showing the names and occupations of all workmen employed by them, in connection with the public work, and showing also the actual wages paid to each of the workmen, which record shall be open at all reasonable hours to the inspection of the director or the public body awarding the contract, its officers and agents.

27-4-411. Workman's right to recover difference in wages. Any workman who shall be paid for his services a sum less than the stipulated rates for work done under the contract, shall have a right of action for whatever difference there may be between the amount so paid and the rates provided by the contract, and shall be entitled to a reasonable attorney fee if successful.

27-4-412. Penalty for violations.

Any officer, agent or representative of any public body who willfully violates, or omits to comply with any of the provisions of this act, and any contractor or subcontractor, or agent or representative thereof, doing public work who intentionally or willfully neglects to keep an accurate record of the names, occupation and actual wages paid to each workman employed by him, in connection with the public work, or who intentionally or willfully refuses to allow access to same at any reasonable hour to any person authorized to inspect same under this act, or who intentionally or willfully has failed to pay the prevailing hourly rate of wages, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00), or by imprisonment not exceeding six (6) months, or by both such fine and imprisonment when convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction.

27-4-413. Inapplicability and exemptions.

The provisions of W.S. 27-4-401 through 27-4-413, are not applicable where in conflict with federal statutes, rules or regulations relating to prevailing wage determinations. All work and labor performed by prisoners, patients and other inmates of state penal, correctional and charitable institutions and city or county jails, are exempt from the provisions of this act. All work and labor performed by workmen regularly employed by the public body are exempt from the provisions of W.S. 27-4-401 through 27-4-413 if the cost of construction does not exceed twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00).

ARTICLE 5 - COLLECTION OF UNPAID WAGES

27-4-501. Definitions.

(a) Whenever used in this act:

(i) "Employer" means any individual, partnership, association, joint stock company, trust, corporation, labor organization, the administrator or executor of the estate of a deceased individual, or the receiver, trustee, or successor of any of the same, employing any person;

(ii) "Employee" means any person who, under the usual common law rules applicable in determining the employer-employee relationship, has the status of an employee;

(iii) "Wages" means compensation, including fringe benefits, for labor or services rendered by an employee, whether the amount is determined on a time, task, piece, commission, or other basis, but does not include the value of vacation leave accrued at the date of termination if the written policies of the employer provide that accrued vacation is forfeited upon termination of employment and the written policies are acknowledged in writing by the employee;

(iv) "Department" means the department of workforce services;

(v) "This act" means W.S. 27-4-501 through 27-4-508.

27-4-502. Claims for unpaid wages; anti-retaliation.

(a) The department is hereby empowered to take claims for unpaid wages under the provisions of W.S. 27-4-101 and 27-4-104. The department in taking a claim for unpaid wages as provided for in this act is not to exceed the maximum amount specified in section 507(a)(4) of title 11, United States Code for claims arising out of bankruptcy or two (2) months wages for any claims not arising out of bankruptcy, per employee per wage claim.

(b) It shall be an unlawful employment practice for any employer to discharge, harass, discipline or in any other manner discriminate against any employee because the employee filed a claim for unpaid wages or made any other complaint or instituted or caused to be instituted any proceeding under or related to this act or testified, assisted or participated in any manner in an investigation, proceeding or hearing under this act. Any employer who violates the provisions of this subsection shall be liable for legal or equitable relief as may be appropriate to effectuate the purposes of this act including continued employment, reinstatement, promotion and the payment of wages lost and an additional equal amount as liquidated damages.

27-4-503. Repealed By Laws 2001, Ch. 162, §2.  27-4-504. Investigation and determination of unpaid wage claims; hearing; orders; collection of unpaid wages.

(a) Upon receipt of a written claim for unpaid wages, the department shall process, investigate and determine the validity of the claim.

(b) If either the employer or employee is aggrieved by the department's determination, the aggrieved party may request a fair hearing. The aggrieved party must file a written request for hearing within fifteen (15) calendar days of receipt of the department's determination. Upon receipt of a timely submitted request for hearing, the director shall appoint an independent hearing officer to conduct the fair hearing between the employer and employee. The fair hearing shall be conducted pursuant to the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act. The hearing officer's determination shall constitute the director's final agency action.

(c) Upon a finding by the hearing officer that the unpaid wage claim is valid and either the time for judicial review has passed or the decision has been affirmed by final judicial review, the department shall order the employer to pay the amount of unpaid wages due. The department's order is not appealable or subject to judicial review. The department shall, with the assistance of the county attorney, initiate legal proceedings to collect the unpaid wages in the court having jurisdiction based on the total amount of unpaid wages due.

(d) An employer's failure to comply with a department's order is punishable by a civil fine not to exceed two hundred dollars ($200.00) for each day the employer fails to comply with the order.

27-4-505. County attorney to assist in collection of unpaid wages.

In suits commenced under this act where the employer failed to comply with the department's order to pay the unpaid wages due, the department shall refer the matter to the appropriate county attorney for enforcement of the department's order.

27-4-506. Limitation on attempts to make payment of wages collected; unclaimed wages.

The department shall attempt for a period of not less than four (4) months from the date of the collection, to make payments of wages collected under this act to the persons entitled to the wages. Wages collected by the department which remain unclaimed for a period of more than four (4) months from the date of collection, shall be unclaimed property for purposes of W.S.