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What do I do if my employer isn't paying me?

Updated July 1, 2026United States

Short answer

Write down exactly what the pay should have been and gather your records, then raise it with your employer in writing. Keep records of the hours you worked, your agreed pay rate, your pay stubs, and any payment that's missing or short. If it isn't fixed, you can file a wage claim with your state labor office or the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division — both handle unpaid-wage complaints, often at no cost. Not being paid for hours worked may be wage theft, and the dated record is what the question gets decided on.

Unpaid wages are recovered on records, not frustration. Build the record first, and every option after it gets stronger.

Step by step

  1. Write down exactly what the pay should have been

    List the hours you worked (with dates), your agreed rate, and which payments are missing or short. A specific number you can back up is far more powerful than "they owe me for a few weeks."

  2. Gather your records

    Collect pay stubs, timesheets, schedules, your offer letter or contract, texts or emails about hours and pay, and bank records showing what did (and didn't) land. Save copies somewhere you control, not only a work account.

  3. Keep tracking it going forward

    Keep logging your hours and pay as it happens. Ongoing, contemporaneous records carry more weight than anything reconstructed later, and gaps in your log become gaps in your claim.

  4. Raise it with your employer in writing

    Send a calm, clear message stating the shortfall and asking for it to be corrected by a specific date, and keep a copy. Sometimes it's a genuine payroll error — and either way, you've created a dated record that you asked.

  5. Know where to file a claim

    Both your state labor office (often a labor commissioner or department of labor) and the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division take unpaid-wage complaints. There are deadlines to file, which vary, so look yours up rather than waiting.

  6. Consider getting advice

    For larger amounts, or if you're punished for raising it, a wage-and-hour or employment attorney — or a legal-aid office — can help, and many offer a free first consultation.

  7. Keep documenting throughout

    Log every conversation, request and response as the issue moves along. One organized record carries you from the first missed payment to a resolved claim.

Plain-English terms

Wage theft
When an employer doesn't pay wages the law requires — from unpaid hours to withheld final pay. It's the umbrella term for most pay disputes.
FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act)
The main federal wage-and-hour law, covering things like minimum wage, overtime, and recordkeeping. Your state may add stronger protections on top of it.
Wage claim
A formal complaint filed with a labor agency to recover unpaid wages. It's often free to file, but there are deadlines that vary by agency and state.
Department of Labor (DOL) / Wage and Hour Division
The federal agency that enforces the FLSA and investigates unpaid-wage complaints. A primary authoritative source for federal wage rules.
State labor office
Your state's own agency for wage complaints (often a "labor commissioner" or "department of labor"). State rules and deadlines vary, so check yours directly.

The tool for this

rippedoffworker

This guide tells you what to do. rippedoffworker does it with you — log the hours you actually worked and what you were paid, and it totals the gap, so you walk into any claim with a number you can back up. Every entry is dated for you.

  • Log hours worked and pay received — the gap totaled automatically
  • Keep pay stubs, schedules and messages together in one place
  • Export a complete, organized record for the DOL, your state labor office, or an attorney
See rippedoffworker

Related questions

This is general information to help you keep your own records — not legal advice. Wage rules and deadlines vary by state and federal law — check the U.S. Department of Labor (Wage and Hour Division) and your state labor office, and consider an attorney or legal aid for your situation.