How to Search for Money from former Employers
There are strong laws protecting employees so that they are paid the compensation they are entitled to by their employers. These include both compensation from regular employment as well as unclaimed retirement funds.
The US Department of Labor is responsible for enforcing some of the nation's most comprehensive labor laws. When they find violations, they often recover wages on behalf of employees. The Department of Labor holds unpaid wages for up to 3 years. Click here to search to see if the Department of Labor is holding unpaid wages for you.
You can also file a claim if you believe an employer has not paid everything they owe you. Your state's department of labor may be the best avenue to file such a claim. Consult an employment law attorney to determine your best course of action.
Often, pensions go unclaimed because people are simply not aware they are owed these retirement funds. According to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), there are more than 80,000 people who have not claimed the pension benefits they are owed. Those unclaimed retirement funds total over $300 million dollars. In 2018, PBGC paid out about $5.7 billion to more than 877,305 retirees in terminated, single-employer plans. To check to see if you have unclaimed pension funds, search at http://search.pbgc.gov/mp/