The Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division is bringing back an updated version of the Payroll Audit Independent Determination (PAID) program. Under PAID, an employer who discovers that it has inadvertently violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) or the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) can come forward and, with DOL approval, pay the back wages it owes without litigation or civil monetary penalties. PAID aims to encourage employers to audit their own pay practices and proactively resolve potential wage and hour claims with faster restitution to employees.
The original PAID program, implemented by the first Trump Administration, applied only to FLSA violations. The Biden Administration ended that program, fearing that it was too lenient to employers. The second Trump administration announced July 24 that it is reviving the PAID program and expanding it to FMLA as well as FLSA violations.
Employers may not use the PAID program if they are already subject to an investigation or lawsuit.
The program does not apply to workers with H-1B, H-2A, or H-2B visas or to employees covered by the Davis-Bacon Act or Service Contract Act.