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Wisconsin sets its own deadline, its own penalty, and its own rule on unused vacation. Here is what the statute says, what it is worth to you, and where to file if the money never arrives.
A discharged employee must be paid in full no later than the date the employee would regularly have been paid under the employer's established payroll schedule (Wis. Stat. § 109.03(1)).
An employee who quits must be paid in full by the next date on which the employee would regularly have been paid under the payroll schedule.
Wisconsin treats vacation pay as wages when the employer's policy or contract creates it; earned vacation must be paid unless a valid written policy provides otherwise.
Commissions are wages under § 109.03 when earned; the employer's established plan sets the earning event, and the payroll-schedule deadline still applies at separation.
Wis. Stat. § 109.11: in addition to the wages due, the department or a court may award increased wages of up to 50% of the amount owed unless the employer shows extreme hardship.
On $2,000.00 of unpaid wages, a 50% penalty would be about $1,000.00. Treat that number as leverage in the letter, not as a promise: a court or agency decides what is actually owed, and the penalty provisions usually require the employer to have acted wilfully or without good cause.
File with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development — Equal Rights Division, which handles wage claims administratively, usually at no cost. The alternative is small claims court, where the limit for an individual in Wisconsin is $10,000. Both routes go better with a dated written demand and a certified-mail receipt, because the first question either forum asks is when the employer knew.
A discharged employee must be paid in full no later than the date the employee would regularly have been paid under the employer's established payroll schedule (Wis. Stat. § 109.03(1)).
An employee who quits must be paid in full by the next date on which the employee would regularly have been paid under the payroll schedule.
Wisconsin treats vacation pay as wages when the employer's policy or contract creates it; earned vacation must be paid unless a valid written policy provides otherwise.
Two routes: file a wage claim with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development — Equal Rights Division (https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/er/laborstandards/), or sue in small claims court where an individual's claim limit is $10,000. A dated written demand sent first is what makes either route easier, because it fixes the date the employer was on notice.
Only official sources are used: the state labor agency, the statute itself, and where relevant the U.S. Department of Labor. Third-party summary sites are deliberately excluded because they disagree with each other on penalty formulas.
Reviewed 2026-11-03 · reviewed again every 90 days.
being fired · resigning · a layoff · unused PTO · unpaid commissions