Publication
Colorado’s HB25-1001 Makes Additional Changes to the State’s Wage and Hour Laws
By Bill Ojile and Ainsley Hill1
This client alert, the third in our series on Colorado employment law changes from the 2025 Colorado Legislative Session, analyzes other significant legislative changes. Our previous alerts addressed new liability for owners of employer-entities and new fines for employee misclassifications. The changes discussed in this alert become effective on August 6, 2025.
Key Provisions
- Civil Penalty Waiver: Employers can avoid fines for failure to pay claimed wages. Current law imposes a penalty when an employer fails to pay wages or compensation within fourteen days after it receives a written demand or notice of a civil action or administrative claim. HB25-1001 allows the Director of the Division of Labor Standards and Statistics (“the Director”) to waive the penalty for failure to pay if the employer pays all claimed wages within fourteen days of receiving notice of an administrative action. (Section 3)
- Employer Attorney Fees Determination: Employers have a greater chance of recovering attorney fees from civil actions brought under Colorado’s wage laws. Previously, an employer could only recover attorney fees and costs if: (1) the employer made a full legal tender of the wages demanded within fourteen days after receiving a written demand letter or notice of a civil action, and (2) the employee failed to recover a total sum greater than the amount the employer tendered. HB25-1001 eliminates the second prong’s numeric standard, instead allowing a court to award the employer its fees and costs when the court finds that the employee’s claim lacks substantial justification. (Section 4)
- Authorization of Local Government Legislation: Employers will have to monitor and comply with new county and city wage and hour laws. HB25-1001 authorizes cities and counties to make and enforce their own wage and hour laws. (Section 5)
- Employee Civil Action Remedies: Employers face new forms of liability for wage law violations. Previously, employees could only sue employers for violations of Article 4 and its accompanying regulations. HB25-1001 allows employees to sue for violations of Article 4 and any other law or rule related to wages or hours, such as those promulgated by local governments under their new authority granted by Section 5. Furthermore, HB25-1001 explicitly allows plaintiffs in such actions to pursue all available equitable relief, including relief to deter future violations by employers. (Section 4)
- Division’s Enhanced Adjudication Authority: The Division of Labor Standards and Statistics (“the Division”) will adjudicate more nonpayment of wage claims. Previously, the Division could only adjudicate claims for up to $7,500 of unpaid wages or compensation. Under HB25-1001, for claims filed from July 1, 2026, through December 31, 2027, the Division may adjudicate claims for up to $13,000 of unpaid wages or compensation. This value will increase on January 1, 2028, and again every year thereafter. (Section 5)
- Publication of Employer Violations: Employers may face public scrutiny and licensing obstacles for wage and hour violations. HB25-1001 empowers the Division to publish certain violations on the Division’s website, including the employer’s name. It also permits the Division to refer employers in violation to other state and local government agencies that may prevent or inhibit the employer’s permits or licenses needed to operate their business. (Section 5)
- For any violation: The Director may report the employer to government agencies with authority to deny, withdraw, or limit the employer’s permits or licenses. The Director also may post a decision against the employer by another government body on the Division’s website.For a violation that is a matter of public record: The Director must publish on the Division website the violation found, the employer’s name, and whether it was willful. A violation is a matter of public record if the employer receives a notice of citation or assessment for violation of a wage law after all remedies have been exhausted.
- For a willful violation unremedied within sixty days after the Division’s finding: The Director must report the employer to any government agency with authority to deny, withdraw, or limit the employer’s permits or licenses. The Division may also publish a decision against the employer by another government agency on the Division’s website.
- Discrimination and Retaliation – Application of Prohibitions: HB25-1001 places greater restrictions on discriminatory and retaliatory behaviors by employers. First, it applies discrimination/retaliation prohibitions to all people who function as employers, even if not formally classified as such. This appears to include owners who are now liable for Colorado’s wage and hour laws, as discussed in our first alert in this series, and contracting agencies. Second, it extends retaliation protections to all workers, including both employees and independent contractors. Third, it makes new types of relief available to workers who bring civil actions for retaliation, including damages for emotional distress. Finally, raising concerns about an employer’s compliance with wage and hour laws is now a protected activity for workers. (Section 7)
- Discrimination and Retaliation – Instructions for Factfinders: Employers need to be careful about the timing of any adverse action against an employee. HB25-1001 instructs fact finders in wage and hour law actions that ninety days or fewer between a worker’s exercise of a protected activity and an employer’s adverse action towards that employee, on its own, could be sufficient evidence of retaliation. (Section 7)
How Employers Can Prepare
HB25-1001 makes many changes to Colorado’s wage and hour laws and holds new people accountable for employer’s obligations and responsibilities. These changes subject employers to a greater risk of legal action and new penalties for violations. Employers and others who are concerned about the implications of HB25-1001 should seek legal counsel to ensure they comply with it and Colorado’s other wage and hour laws by August 6, 2025.
Footnotes
-
Snell & Wilmer 2025 Summer Associate Ainsley Hill provided material assistance in the production of this article. Ainsley Hill is not a licensed attorney.
About Snell & Wilmer
Founded in 1938, Snell & Wilmer is a full-service business law firm with more than 500 attorneys practicing in 17 locations throughout the United States and in Mexico, including Los Angeles, Orange County, Palo Alto and San Diego, California; Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona; Denver, Colorado; Washington, D.C.; Boise, Idaho; Las Vegas and Reno-Tahoe, Nevada; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Portland, Oregon; Dallas, Texas; Salt Lake City, Utah; Seattle, Washington; and Los Cabos, Mexico. The firm represents clients ranging from large, publicly traded corporations to small businesses, individuals and entrepreneurs. For more information, visit swlaw.com.
