About Strategic Enforcement
The DLSS Strategic Enforcement program responds to systemic compliance challenges. This program uses a number of tools to maximize impact with limited resources:
- Employer education and outreach;
- Targeted voluntary compliance to help employers proactively remedy violations;
- Division-initiated Direct Investigations of systemic employer violations;
- Worker education and outreach; and
- Collaboration with community-based organizations, trade associations, and other stakeholders.
Strategic Enforcement improves worker protections for vulnerable workers, and addresses pervasive or industry-wide compliance issues that are not remedied by complaint-driven investigations.
Relevant Links
- Information about systemic labor law violations can be submitted through the CDLE Tip and Lead Form.
- While the DLSS may investigate information provided through the Tip and Lead Form, you will not be told whether we investigate, or the outcome of any investigation. To file an individual complaint, please use the individual complaint form.
- Direct Investigations are governed by the Direct Investigation Rules (7 CCR 1103-8), available on our DLSS rules webpage.
Enforcement Initiatives
The Strategic Enforcement program works with employers across the state of Colorado, in all industries, and with all types of violations in the DLSS’s jurisdiction. It also focuses on enforcement in specific industries.
A major focus of the DLSS’s Strategic Enforcement program is the misclassification of workers as independent contractors rather than employees, which can deprive employees of fundamental labor rights, including paid sick and safe leave, overtime or the minimum wage, and protections against unlawful deductions from wages.
The DLSS Strategic Enforcement program works towards compliance in the construction industry through:
- Voluntary compliance engagements to educate employers and provide a path to compliance without a formal investigation or orders.
- Informational site visits to construction worksites to verify compliance.
- Formal investigations that may result in citations with orders to pay significant fines and wages to dozens to hundreds of workers (e.g., those against Super Mario Construction and Diversified Builders Inc. (DBI)), or settlements providing similar relief (e.g., the post-citation settlement in investigation of Randy's Drywall Services (RDS)). See our press release for more information.
The DLSS also publishes extensive guidance in our INFOs page to help employers comply, including INFO #1 summarizing many requirements of Colorado labor law, INFO #6 and #6B on Colorado’s required sick and safe leave, and INFO #10 on employee classification.
The Direct Investigations program investigates a number of issues impacting restaurant and retail workers:
- Not receiving overtime or the correct state or local minimum wage.
- Not receiving “sick and safe” leave required by the Healthy Families and Workplaces Act.
- Working without rest and meal breaks.
- For tipped employees, unlawful tip pooling/sharing practices, and overtime that is incorrectly calculated as 1.5x the reduced tipped minimum wage.
The Direct Investigations program works towards compliance in the restaurant and retail industries through:
- Targeted voluntary compliance letters that educate employers and provide a path to compliance without a formal investigation or orders.
- Formal investigations that may result in citations ordering compliance, wages, penalties, and fines; or settlements providing similar relief.
The DLSS also publishes extensive guidance on our INFOs page to help employers comply, including INFO #1 summarizing many requirements of Colorado labor law, INFO #3C on tips and tipped employees, INFO #4 on meal and rest periods, and INFO #6 and #6B on Colorado’s required sick and safe leave.
Colorado’s agricultural workers are afforded protections and rights under the Agricultural Labor Rights and Responsibilities Act and implementing regulations, in addition to laws applicable to all Colorado workers. These include:
- Overtime and meal and rest breaks.
- Access to shade, water, and additional breaks during hot weather.
- Training on preventing heat-related illness and injury.
- Notice of worker rights under Colorado law.
The Direct Investigations program works towards compliance in the agricultural industry through:
- Voluntary compliance engagements to educate employers and provide a path to compliance without a formal investigation or orders.
- Informational site visits to agricultural worksites and pay record audits to verify compliance.
- Formal investigations that may result in citations ordering compliance, wages, penalties, and fines; or settlements providing similar relief.
The DLSS also publishes extensive guidance on our INFOs page to help employers comply, including INFO #1 summarizing many requirements of Colorado labor law, INFO #3C on tips and tipped employees, INFO #4 on meal and rest periods, INFO #6 and #6B on Colorado’s required sick and safe leave, and the INFO #12 series on rights and protections for agricultural workers.
Worker Survey Information
The DLSS Strategic Enforcement program sends surveys and information to workers in some investigations. Surveys may request information about a specific employer, and an employee’s name or contact information. They will never request sensitive personal or financial information like a Social Security number or credit card number. Participation in these surveys is not required, but will aid our investigation and may help us send you payments for wages or penalties we determine you are owed.
Text messages and surveys from the DLSS will be sent by SMS text message from 303-318-8444, from a specific employee’s phone line that can be verified, or by state email addresses ending in @state.co.us. If you are unsure whether a text or email came from our Strategic Enforcement program, please contact us at 303-318-8441.
Contact Us
Colorado Division of Labor Standards and Statistics | 303-318-8441| Contact Us