Unpaid Wage Cases in Rhode Island
Since 2005 the U.S. Department of Labor has found $18.9M in back wages owed to 17,371 Rhode Island workers, in 1,074 cases, and assessed $3.5M in penalties. 155 cases involved child labor violations covering 550 minors.
What workers weren't paid
Industries with the most back wages
Cases with back wages by year
By city
| City | Back wages | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Providence | $5.7M | 3,471 |
| Warwick | $2.3M | 2,063 |
| Pawtucket | $1.2M | 1,130 |
| Johnston | $1.1M | 695 |
| Newport | $873K | 1,084 |
| East Providence | $743K | 609 |
| Cranston | $743K | 908 |
| Westerly | $657K | 867 |
| East Greenwich | $488K | 490 |
| Cumberland | $426K | 319 |
| West Warwick | $415K | 303 |
| Riverside | $343K | 329 |
| Lincoln | $337K | 903 |
| Coventry | $325K | 215 |
| North Providence | $304K | 187 |
| Middletown | $304K | 409 |
| North Kingstown | $283K | 299 |
| Wakefield | $189K | 188 |
| Central Falls | $183K | 82 |
| Bristol | $164K | 227 |
| Smithfield | $146K | 210 |
| Woonsocket | $135K | 430 |
| Tiverton | $120K | 87 |
| North Smithfield | $113K | 285 |
Cities with at least 10 cases with back wages.
Employment lawyers in Rhode Island
Lawbamba lists 13 employment lawyers with an office in Rhode Island, the practice area that deals with the wage theft cases on this page. These 4 come first in that listing (how the order is set).
Matched by practice area and office location only. These lawyers are not connected to the records on this page and have not reviewed or endorsed it.
Owed wages by a Rhode Island employer?
Compare employment lawyers in Rhode IslandSource: 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.