Denver Labor, a division of the Auditor’s Office that audits certified payrolls and investigates wage complaints, wrapped up a year spent recovering more than $2 million owed to 4,505 workers.

A record $2,070,153 in restitution was recovered by Denver Labor in 2024, the third consecutive year of record-breaking recoveries — shining light on the need for continued wage theft enforcement and education.

“These outcomes compel us to continue our efforts for the thousands of individuals who still need our help,” Denver Auditor Timothy M. O’Brien said. “Whether an individual receives hundreds or thousands of dollars in restitution, that’s money that should have been in their pocket on payday to pay their bills and support their families.”

According to the Denver Labor website, wage theft is the failure to pay workers the full wages to which they are legally entitled. This can include not paying workers minimum wage, overtime, paid sick time, or illegally withholding employee-earned tips.

The Denver City Council passed the Civil Wage Theft Ordinance on Jan. 9, 2023, creating more substantial penalties and vesting responsibility for implementation and enforcement with the Denver Auditor’s Office.

Before Denver implemented the ordinance, victims of wage theft who suffered losses of less than $2,000 had little path for recourse or restitution.

A review of 2024 minimum wage and civil wage theft cases published by Denver Labor revealed service industry workers, including restaurant servers, bartenders and salon workers, were among those most likely to be victims.

In one of its high-dollar cases, Denver Labor recovered $120,867 for 16 employees at One Connection Nails after discovering the company was paying strictly commissions and tips and not keeping track of the hours worked by their employees.

Denver’s ordinance states tips outside the food and beverage industry should not be deducted from the worker’s hourly rate by employers.

In another wage theft complaint, a restaurant was required to return $77,606 to 304 workers after it was determined Puerta Vallarta LLC was paying its employees below Denver’s tipped minimum wage. The restaurant promptly paid its workers. Restitution for the case included $32,045.80 in unpaid wages, $32,360.94 in damages, and a 12% annual interest of $13,197.74.

Local gig workers — those who work short-term jobs or as independent contractors — were also victims of wage theft this year. Denver Labor issued extensive liability determinations for gig staffing companies like Instawork and GigPro, where the company misclassified nearly 3,000 employees as independent contractors and, in doing so, “violated nearly every applicable wage and hour law.”

Gig worker Alison Jones uses between 10-15 apps to find jobs.

Jones usually works concession jobs around many of Denver’s larger event venues, according to Michael Brannen, executive director of communications and government relations for the Office of the City Auditor.

Jones, an U.S. Army veteran, picked up a job working concessions at the Taylor Swift concert this summer.

Upon receiving her paycheck, she noticed she was short about $300 in tips.

After seeing a Denver Labor poster regarding wages, Brannen said Jones reached out for assistance.

After Denver Labor investigated, it was determined wage theft had occurred and Jones was entitled not only to the missing $300 in tips but also damages, for a final award of $900.

Brannen said Jones was elated and has been encouraging other gig workers in the area to report suspected wage theft.

“In Denver alone, Instawork has committed more than 16,000 violations of its employees’ wage and hour rights,” stated a liability determination letter posted by Denver Labor on Jan. 16. “Each of these acts also constitutes a separate violation of the city’s civil wage theft ordinance.”

Denver Labor ordered the California-based staffing company to pay more than $1 million in fines and restitution.

In the modern gig economy, issues like this are common and employees are not able to take their cases to court and can’t join class action lawsuits due to the terms of their employment, O’Brien said in an earlier press release announcing the fines. 

This year, Denver Labor’s annual reporting period for wage theft and prevailing wage restitution saw 753 cases closed with restitution, including 694 prevailing wage cases, representing an increase of 167 closed cases compared to 2023, according to a statement from the auditor’s office.

Currently, 236 wage theft cases remain open and are actively being pursued, the statement said.

“Wage theft affects the entire community. Lost wages mean less money circulating in Denver’s economy, and it also results in a significant amount of unpaid taxes and insurance premiums that fund the city’s operations and vital social safety net programs we all depend on,” O’Brien said. “When people don’t get the money they’ve earned, they’re at risk of falling behind on bills, struggling to pay for food and transportation, and facing eviction.”

The citywide minimum wage rate will increase from $18.29 per hour to $18.81 per hour on Jan. 1, 2025. Employers can still claim up to $3.02 in tip credits per hour for qualified food and beverage workers, provided employers can show documentation of at least that amount in actual tips received.

With the new Denver minimum wage coming into effect, Brannen anticipates an increase in case loads relating to wage theft and that the new subpoena powers within the Office of the Auditor will be a “game changer” for future investigations.