Louisiana Wage Recovery
Your employer is required to pay your earned wages promptly after you leave a job. If they haven't, a formal demand letter is your strongest first move.
When your employment ends in Louisiana — whether you quit, were fired, or were laid off — your employer cannot simply hold onto wages you already earned. State law sets a firm deadline for paying out your final paycheck.
Phone calls and texts to a former employer are easy to ignore. A written demand letter that references the specific Louisiana statutes changes the tone: it shows you understand your rights and are prepared to pursue them.
Louisiana's wage statutes have real teeth. An employer who ignores a proper written demand for earned wages can become liable for penalty wages and attorney fees on top of what you are owed — which is why a letter citing La. R.S. 23:631 and 23:632 gets read differently than a voicemail. The cost of continued stalling is spelled out on the page.
This page is for you if…
Your letter references the Louisiana Wage Payment Act and penalty-wage statute, so the employer sees you know the legal deadline they missed.
We frame a firm payment deadline and create a written record that you demanded payment in good faith before any further action.
A clean, formal structure signals you are serious — which is often enough to get a stalled paycheck released.
Total your unpaid hours, salary, commissions, or accrued amounts so your demand states a specific figure.
A 10–14 day window to pay is standard and shows good faith while still creating urgency.
Send by certified mail with return receipt so you can show exactly when the employer received your demand.
These statutes provide general legal context for this type of dispute. They are included for your information and are not legal advice.
Louisiana law requires employers to pay all earned wages promptly after employment ends. When an employee is terminated or resigns, the employer generally must pay final wages by the next regular payday or within 15 days, whichever comes first.
Establishes the employer's legal duty to pay your final wages on a strict timeline — the foundation of a final-paycheck demand.
If an employer fails to pay earned wages after a demand is made, the employer may owe penalty wages of up to 90 days of the employee's daily pay, plus reasonable attorney fees.
Shows why a written demand matters: continued refusal can expose the employer to penalty wages and attorney fees on top of what is already owed.
Under the Louisiana Wage Payment Act (La. R.S. 23:631), employers must pay your earned final wages by the next regular payday or within 15 days of separation, whichever comes first.
Louisiana's penalty-wage statute (La. R.S. 23:632) can make an employer who fails to pay liable for penalty wages plus reasonable attorney fees, and you can file suit to recover what you are owed.
No. The deadline to pay wages you have already earned applies whether you quit, were laid off, or were terminated.
Earned hourly pay, salary, and agreed commissions you worked for. Disputed bonuses or benefits that never accrued can be more complicated and may need separate analysis.
A 10–14 day deadline in your letter is standard — it shows good faith while still creating real urgency.
A client won't pay an invoice. A proper open-account demand sets a deadline and can preserve attorney fees.
You lent money in good faith and were never repaid. Make the obligation clear and set a firm deadline to pay.
Another party broke a written or verbal agreement. Demand performance or damages before heading to court.
Answer seven short questions and get a free, personalized Recovery Roadmap that shows where your dispute stands today, the evidence to gather, and the practical steps to resolve it — before you spend a dollar.
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