Higher Fines for Breaking Labor Laws Go into Effect

Maine's Bureau of Labor Standards (BLS) is increasing fines for breaking laws thanks to a new law passed by the Maine Legislature earlier this year. The rule also introduces a new requirement for the Bureau to study the level of unreported labor law violations in the state, and devise a public-facing strategy to proactively address these violations.

"A crucial component of effective labor law enforcement is deterrence," said Dr. Jason Moyer-Lee, Director of the Bureau of Labor Standards. “It must be costlier to disobey the law than to obey it. At the same time, effective enforcement must also be rigorous about due process and should be evidence-based and transparent in its actions. This rule takes us forward on all counts.”

Under the old rule, fines would start at the minimum level and then often reduce from there, but under the new rule most violations would start with a fine of $1,000, which would then be reduced by considering factors such as employer size, repeat violations, the severity of the violation, or if the fine for a particular violation is capped at a lower amount. For instance, for minimum wage, the minimum penalty is $50, and the maximum penalty is $200, per violation. Therefore, due to the new rule’s more stringent criteria, it is likely that minimum wage violations would result in the maximum penalty of $200 per violation.

According to the BLS, the new rule is part of the Department’s ongoing strategic enforcement efforts, which is using resources and tools most effectively to achieve widespread and long-lasting compliance with labor laws. Other recent efforts have included supporting the passage of a law, now in effect, that empowers the Department to order employers to pay wages, liquidated damages, and interest to workers owed money and monthly meetings with business and union representatives to increase coordination and collaboration.