DENVER — Colorado lawmakers are once again looking to crack down on wage theft.
Lawmakers on Thursday held a hearing on House Bill 25-1001, which aims to help employees and punish employers who don’t pay their workers.
Jose Salazar, a sheet metal worker, said a former employer cheated him out of $22,000 last year. He said things became worse after he questioned the employer about his unpaid wages.
“They retaliated against me. They fired me,” Salazar said.
The Colorado Fiscal Institute estimates 440,000 people in the state are victims of wage theft every year, with unpaid wages totaling $728 million.
"Wage theft is a huge problem in Colorado,” said Mark Thompson, a senior representative with the Western States Regional Council of Carpenters.
Thompson said the construction industry is notorious for wage theft due to the complex layers of subcontractors and its reliance on undocumented workers.
“There are a number of undocumented workers in the construction industry. They find themselves in a tight spot. They're exploited because of their situation. They're very vulnerable and they find themselves having to accept what is offered to them,” said Thompson.
Governor Jared Polis vetoed a wage theft bill last year, angering labor groups. He said the bill, House Bill 24-1008, would have made general contractors liable for wages not paid by subcontractors, essentially forcing general contractors to pay for the same work twice.
After the governor issued his veto, the bill’s sponsors, which included House Majority Leader Monica Duran, D-Wheat Ridge, began working with the governor’s team to craft a new bill.
“I am really optimistic that we found that common ground,” said Duran.
Shelby Wieman, the press secretary for the governor’s office, confirmed the governor was supportive of the new bill.
“Governor Polis appreciates the work and leadership of Representative Meg Froelich and Majority Leader Monica Duran to strengthen our wage theft laws to ensure workers are paid the money they are owed for the work they do. He appreciates the sponsors working closely with his team and stakeholders to bring back a strong proposal he supports to reduce wage theft,” said Wieman.
Right now, employees who file wage theft claims with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) can only get back up to $7,500 of what they're owed. The new bill would allow employees to get up to $13,000. The cap would be adjusted for inflation starting in 2028.
HB25-1001 would also increase penalties for employers that misclassify workers as independent contractors and reduce the time employees have to wait to be paid from the Wage Theft Enforcement Fund from six to four months.
"This will give workers better access to securing some of those wages that were stolen from them,” said Thompson.
The Colorado Competitive Council, which advocates for business-friendly policies, opposes the bill.
“Wage theft is a terrible practice that no legitimate business condones, and we appreciate the sponsors’ work on this important issue,” said Rachel Beck, the executive director of the Colorado Competitive Council. “We want to ensure that the bill appropriately punishes bad actors while not being overly punitive towards the good ones if they inadvertently make a mistake and work to correct it. We have had a number of conversations with sponsors about our specific concerns and are optimistic we can work together to resolve them.”
The Colorado Chamber of Commerce said it was seeking to have the bill amended.
"We are in an amend position to clarify issues around the industries impacted and how the bill applies to independent contractors," said Cynthia Eveleth-Havens, the senior vice president of communications for the chamber. "We also would like to see more balance so punitive action isn’t taken against employers acting in good faith."
Salazar, who has been without a job since November 2024, testified in support of the bill Thursday.
“It will help a lot of employees,” said Salazar. “And that way, employers will think about it more before they start not paying people.”
HB25-1001 passed out of the House Business Affairs & Labor Committee on Thursday with an 8-5 vote.
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