Arizona Law states that if an employer fails to pay wages due an employee, the employee may file a civil lawsuit against the former employer and the employee may get an amount that is triple the amount of the unpaid wages (A.R.S. § 23-355).

Instead of filing a lawsuit, an employee may file a written claim with the Industrial Commission of Arizona for unpaid wages against an employer if the amount of the wages is $2,500 or less and if the claim is filed within one year of its accrual.

Under Arizona Law (A.R.S. § 23-352), an employer cannot withhold or divert any portion of an employee's wages EXCEPT for the following reasons:

1) the employer is required to do so by state or federal law

2) the employee has submitted a voluntary written authorization to the employer (e.g., deduction for union dues)

3) the employer has received a written authorization based upon an agreement between the employee and employer (e.g., payment for lost tools or equipment or for purchase made from the employer)

4) there is a reasonable, good faith doubt as to the amount of the wages due

You should note that there are some exceptions to the requirement that employees be paid minimum wage. For example, full-time students in retail, service or agricultural occupations, and at institutions of higher learning, may be paid an hourly rate of not less than 85% of the minimum wage.

For employees who receive tips, the employer can pay up to $3.00 less than the minimum wage per hour ($6.75 per hour right now), if the employer keeps records to show the employee’s hourly wage plus tips equaled the minimum wage. The Minimum Wage Law can be found at A.R.S. §§ 23-362-364. You can read more information about the Minimum wage from the U.S. Department of Labor online.

Also see the answer to the SpeakUp Question #10853.