New PAID Act Creates Fast Track for Back Wages, But Excludes Visa Workers

The new Ensuring Workers Get PAID Act of 2025 is setting up a permanent, voluntary program for employers to fix minimum wage and overtime mistakes quickly. Think of it as a fast-lane settlement option for wage theft.

This bill formalizes the Payroll Audit Independent Determination (PAID) program, which lets employers who realize they accidentally underpaid staff conduct a self-audit, calculate what they owe, and pay it back without the full-scale, time-consuming Department of Labor investigation. The data from the pilot program is compelling: self-audits recovered four times the average back wages per case, and did it in half the time compared to standard enforcement. For workers, this means potentially getting the money they are owed much faster than waiting for a government lawsuit to crawl through the system.

The Self-Correction Loophole

If an employer wants to use the PAID program, they have to apply to the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. They must submit a detailed self-audit, list every affected employee, show their math for calculating back pay, and—critically—assure the Administrator that they’ve already fixed the underlying payroll practice that caused the violation. This is for employers acting in “good faith,” meaning they can’t be under investigation or currently facing a lawsuit over these specific violations when they apply (SEC. 3).

For the employer, the incentive is huge. They get to resolve the issue quickly, and the application information they submit is protected. The Administrator is barred from using that self-audit data to start a new investigation against them or even allowing it to be used in court discovery, unless the employer agrees (SEC. 4). Essentially, the bill offers a confidential, low-risk way for companies to clear their books of past wage errors.

Your Rights at the Coffee Shop Counter

When the Department of Labor approves the back-wage calculation, they send a release form to the affected employee. This is where you, the worker, have a choice. If you accept the offer and cash the check, you are waiving your right to sue that employer later for those specific unpaid wages and damages. If you think the amount is too low, or you want to pursue additional damages, you can simply decline the offer and keep your right to sue privately. The bill explicitly protects you from retaliation regardless of whether you accept or decline the settlement (SEC. 4).

Who Gets Left Out of the Fast Lane

While the program promises efficiency, there’s a significant carve-out in the definition of an “affected employee.” The bill specifically excludes workers covered by certain federal prevailing wage rules, including those under H1B, H2B, or H2A visa programs, and certain federal contractors (SEC. 3).

What this means in practice is that if you are a worker in the U.S. on one of these visas and your employer realizes they owe you back wages, they cannot use this efficient, fast-track PAID program to pay you back. They would have to use the traditional, slower enforcement channels. This creates a two-tiered system where some of the most vulnerable workers—those whose employment status is tied to their employer—are excluded from the most streamlined recovery process. It’s a strange choice to exclude groups that often rely heavily on government oversight to ensure fair pay.