Louisiana Final Paycheck Demand Letter

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   A final paycheck demand letter is a written demand a departed Louisiana employee sends a former employer to collect unpaid final wages, before filing suit for the wages and penalty wages in district or small claims court.

2. 2

   The deadline is the same whether you were fired or you quit: the employer must pay on or before the next regular payday or no later than 15 days following the date of discharge or resignation, whichever occurs first (La. R.S. 23:631).

3. 3

   If the employer fails to pay on time, on a well-founded suit it can be liable for penalty wages of either 90 days of wages at your daily rate of pay, or full wages from your demand until it pays, whichever is the lesser amount (La. R.S. 23:632(A)).

4. 4

   Louisiana law also allows the court to award reasonable attorney fees to the employee on a well-founded suit for unpaid wages filed after three days from the first demand (La. R.S. 23:632(C)).

5. 5

   The penalty does not apply where the employer had a good-faith dispute over the amount owed; in that case liability is limited to the wages in dispute plus judicial interest from the date suit is filed (La. R.S. 23:632(B)).

6. 6

   Accrued unused vacation is a final wage owed only if the employer's stated vacation policy deems you eligible, the right has accrued, and you have not taken or been paid for it as of separation (La. R.S. 23:631(D)).

7. 7

   A Louisiana employer generally cannot deduct fines from your wages and cannot force you to sign away wages you already earned; you are entitled to the wages actually earned up to your separation (La. R.S. 23:635 and 23:634).

Louisiana Requirements for Final Paycheck Demand Letter

• Final Pay Deadline If You Were Fired

  If a Louisiana employer discharges or lays off an employee, it must pay the amount then due on or before the next regular payday or no later than 15 days following the date of discharge, whichever occurs first (La. R.S. 23:631(A)(1)(a)). Your demand letter should state that this deadline has passed.

• Final Pay Deadline If You Quit

  If a Louisiana employee resigns, the employer must pay on or before the next regular payday for the pay cycle worked at separation or no later than 15 days following the date of resignation, whichever occurs first (La. R.S. 23:631(A)(1)(b)). The deadline is the same rule as for a discharge. State your last day and the resulting due date.

• Penalty Wages Plus Attorney Fees

  If a Louisiana employer fails or refuses to pay final wages, on a well-founded suit it can be liable for penalty wages of either 90 days of wages at the employee's daily rate of pay, or full wages from the demand until it pays, whichever is the lesser amount, plus reasonable attorney fees (La. R.S. 23:632(A) and (C)). The penalty does not apply where the employer had a good-faith dispute over the amount owed (La. R.S. 23:632(B)). Reserve this penalty in your letter.

• Unused Vacation Depends on the Employer Policy

  In Louisiana, accrued unused vacation is a final wage owed only if the employer's stated vacation policy deems the employee eligible, the right has accrued, and the employee has not taken or been paid for the vacation as of the date of discharge or resignation (La. R.S. 23:631(D)). If your policy meets those conditions, list the unpaid vacation.

• Limits on Deductions From a Final Paycheck

  A Louisiana employer generally cannot assess fines or deduct any sum as fines from wages, except for the actual amount of damage where the employee willfully or negligently damaged property or was convicted of theft of the employer's funds, and the fine cannot exceed the actual damage (La. R.S. 23:635). An employer also cannot force forfeiture of wages already earned (La. R.S. 23:634). Dispute any improper deduction.

• Where to File in Louisiana

  Louisiana has no state agency that decides private final-wage claims; the Louisiana Workforce Commission does not adjudicate them. You enforce La. R.S. 23:631 and 23:632 by filing suit for the wages, penalty wages, and attorney fees, usually in a city, parish, or justice of the peace small claims court for smaller amounts, or in district court for larger claims. Keep your records for the suit.

• Send With Proof of Delivery

  Send the demand to the employer's address using a trackable method such as certified mail with return receipt, and keep a copy of the letter and the delivery record. Louisiana ties penalty wages and attorney fees to a demand, so proof that you demanded your final wages supports a later suit (La. R.S. 23:632).

• Deadline to Sue for Unpaid Wages

  In Louisiana, an action for the recovery of compensation for services rendered, including salaries and wages, is subject to a liberative prescription of three years (La. Civ. Code art. 3494(1)). Filing your demand and any suit promptly is the practical course rather than waiting near the limit.