Wage Theft » Wisconsin

Unpaid Wage Cases in Wisconsin

Since 2005 the U.S. Department of Labor has found $44.7M in back wages owed to 51,574 Wisconsin workers, in 1,979 cases, and assessed $5M in penalties. 359 cases involved child labor violations covering 1,512 minors.

$44.7MBack wages employers agreed to pay
51,574Workers owed back wages
1,979Cases with back wages

What workers weren't paid

Overtime not paid$26M (58%)
Prevailing wage on government contracts$9.4M (21%)
Below minimum wage$4.9M (11%)
Other laws (farmworker, visa, leave and more)$4.4M (10%)

Industries with the most back wages

Full-Service Restaurants$7.8M (17%)
Temporary Help Services$5.1M (11%)
Service Establishment Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers$2.4M (5%)
Other Residential Care Facilities$1.6M (3%)
Oil and Gas Pipeline and Related Structures Construction$1.5M (3%)
Nursing Care Facilities$1.2M (3%)
Support Activities for Forestry$1.1M (3%)
Other Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction$858K (2%)
Janitorial Services$740K (2%)
Security Guards and Patrol Services$733K (2%)

Cases with back wages by year

05010015020088200587200669200761200869200991201095201117020121132013872014113201570201612120171062018902019902020712021752022872023108202456202592026

By city

CityBack wagesWorkersCases
Milwaukee$10.5M 15,727380
Madison$3.1M 1,923149
Eau Claire$2.2M 3,00835
Appleton$1.5M 1,90051
Green Bay$1.3M 2,47080
Kenosha$939K 68635
Waukesha$924K 1,15346
New Berlin$917K 46116
Racine$858K 81941
Menomonee Falls$652K 2,87617
Pewaukee$640K 67324
Sauk City$622K 20710
Wisconsin Dells$522K 78619
Sparta$482K 23819
Baraboo$387K 64017
Wausau$387K 38719
La Crosse$355K 60832
Stevens Point$354K 22610
Portage$342K 7316
Hudson$334K 25612
Oak Creek$318K 29615
Brookfield$297K 15619
Mequon$293K 14913
Middleton$243K 10510
De Pere$238K 32612
Superior$217K 29215
Janesville$211K 56317
Oshkosh$211K 40326
Marshfield$208K 23114
Sun Prairie$195K 10013
Neenah$171K 5011
Germantown$152K 20715
Beloit$140K 14421
Menomonie$95,647 5610
Sheboygan$91,934 11016
Merrill$91,476 19510
Fond Du Lac$89,269 22814
Marinette$78,252 20411
Burlington$74,369 12113
Tomah$42,581 5810
Chippewa Falls$34,361 16013

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.