Wage Theft » Colorado

Unpaid Wage Cases in Colorado

Since 2005 the U.S. Department of Labor has found $61.3M in back wages owed to 82,309 Colorado workers, in 3,796 cases, and assessed $5.8M in penalties. 349 cases involved child labor violations covering 1,119 minors.

$61.3MBack wages employers agreed to pay
82,309Workers owed back wages
3,796Cases with back wages

What workers weren't paid

Overtime not paid$42.6M (70%)
Prevailing wage on government contracts$10.9M (18%)
Below minimum wage$4.1M (7%)
Other laws (farmworker, visa, leave and more)$3.7M (6%)

Industries with the most back wages

Full-Service Restaurants$5.1M (8%)
Landscaping Services$2.3M (4%)
Janitorial Services$2.1M (3%)
Support Activities for Oil and Gas Operations$1.6M (3%)
Commercial and Institutional Building Construction$1.6M (3%)
Local School Boards or Districts$1.5M (3%)
Temporary Help Services$1.5M (2%)
All Other Specialty Trade Contractors$1.4M (2%)
Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors$1.2M (2%)
Residential Building Construction$1.1M (2%)

Cases with back wages by year

010020030040023120052042006205200725820082292009205201028920113532012338201326720141952015155201611820171132018952019772020662021662022492023312024582025132026

By city

CityBack wagesWorkersCases
Denver$12.8M 19,350833
Colorado Springs$8.5M 8,885567
Englewood$4.7M 6,037201
Aurora$3M 4,903204
Pueblo$2.2M 4,44176
Golden$2.2M 2,47148
Littleton$2.2M 2,102127
Broomfield$1.9M 1,99247
Grand Junction$1.5M 1,686113
Fort Collins$1.5M 2,41690
Commerce City$1.3M 1,03163
Lakewood$998K 1,70359
Brighton$864K 85340
Westminster$802K 1,27445
Aspen$788K 1,33158
Boulder$764K 95857
Longmont$716K 74154
Centennial$714K 69837
Henderson$693K 58219
Castle Rock$553K 46236
Greenwood Village$547K 1,27728
Greeley$531K 1,88851
Arvada$396K 55257
Rifle$386K 37021
Lone Tree$372K 27210
Glenwood Springs$370K 22720
Basalt$357K 20610
Parker$355K 44737
Louisville$344K 20219
Evergreen$341K 28314
Fort Lupton$308K 67412
Loveland$289K 69741
Wheat Ridge$266K 68138
Monument$234K 22915
Fountain$223K 25719
Windsor$218K 25911
Montrose$179K 29124
Vail$172K 38412
Fort Morgan$165K 42624
Durango$159K 35118
Thornton$157K 65031
Avon$119K 42816
Delta$117K 37510
Lafayette$108K 14812
Alamosa$72,003 13713
Craig$64,043 6915
Trinidad$62,858 17019
Woodland Park$60,066 8411
Canon City$39,276 10713
Highlands Ranch$12,981 12810

Cities with at least 10 cases with back wages.

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Source: the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division enforcement data (every concluded compliance action since fiscal year 2005), from the DOL Open Data Portal, loaded November 9, 2026. “Back wages” is the amount employers agreed to pay workers after an investigation found they were underpaid; dates are the end of the period the investigation covered. Employer names and addresses are as DOL publishes them. Federal cases only: state labor departments and private lawsuits recover more that isn't counted here.

Lawbamba is not affiliated with the Department of Labor, and this page is general information, not legal advice.