Work out the shortfall from your own records, raise it in writing with the employer, and if it is not corrected file with your state labor agency or the federal Wage and Hour Division. Both accept complaints directly and neither requires a lawyer. The federal statute of limitations is two years, extended to three for a wilful violation, and several states allow longer.
Start with your own record
Hours worked by day, pay received, and the rate that should have applied. Your record does not have to be perfect. Where an employer has failed to keep proper records, the law does not let that failure defeat a reasonable estimate by the employee.
Keep pay stubs, schedules, clock-in screenshots and messages about shifts. This is the whole case, and it is far easier to assemble now than after you leave.
Raise it in writing first
Frequently it is a payroll error, particularly right after a rate increase. A short factual email — the dates, the hours, the rate applied and the rate owed — resolves a good proportion of these without anything further, and it creates a dated record either way.
Where to file
Your state labor agency where the state rate is higher, which is where most of the money usually is.
The federal Wage and Hour Division for the federal minimum. It investigates and can recover back wages, and filing is free.
You do not need a lawyer for either, and you can do both.
The deadline is the thing that kills claims
Two years federally, three for a wilful violation, and the clock runs backwards from when you file — so waiting does not preserve old weeks, it deletes them one at a time. State limits vary and several are longer.
Retaliation
Retaliating against someone for making a wage complaint is prohibited, and a retaliation claim is separate from and often stronger than the underlying wage claim. Keep the dates of the complaint and of anything that follows it.
What you can recover
The unpaid wages, and under federal law frequently an equal amount again as liquidated damages, which is why small-looking shortfalls are worth pursuing.
Common questions
What should I do first?
Assemble your own record of hours and pay, then raise it in writing with the employer. Many shortfalls are payroll errors after a rate change.
Where do I file a complaint?
Your state labor agency where the state rate is higher, or the federal Wage and Hour Division. Both are free and neither needs a lawyer.
How long do I have?
Two years under federal law, three for a wilful violation, and the clock runs backwards from when you file. Several states allow longer.
What if my employer kept no records?
That failure does not defeat your claim. Where an employer has not kept proper records, a reasonable estimate by the employee can be used.
Can I be punished for complaining?
Retaliation is prohibited, and a retaliation claim is separate from and often stronger than the wage claim itself. Keep the dates.