103.43 Fraudulent advertising for labor.

(1)

(a) No person may influence, induce, persuade or attempt to influence, induce, persuade or engage a worker to change from one place of employment to another in this state or to accept employment in this state, and no person may bring a worker of any class or calling into this state to work in any department of labor in this state, through or by means of any false or deceptive representations, false advertising or false pretenses concerning or arising from any of the following:

1. The kind and character of the work to be done.

2. The amount and character of the compensation to be paid for work.

3. The sanitary or other conditions of the employment.

4. The failure to state in any advertisement, proposal or contract for the employment that there is a strike or lockout at the place of the proposed employment, when a strike or lockout then actually exists in the employment at the proposed place of employment.

(b) Any of the acts described in par. (a) shall be considered a false advertisement or misrepresentation for the purposes of this section.

(1m) A strike or lockout is considered to exist as long as any of the following conditions exists:

(a) The usual concomitants of a strike or lockout.

(b) Unemployment on the part of workers affected continues.

(c) Any payments of strike benefits are being made.

(d) Any picketing is maintained.

(e) Publication is being made of the existence of a strike or lockout.

(2) Any person who, by himself or herself, or by a servant or agent, or as the servant or agent of any other person, or as an officer, director, servant or agent of any firm, corporation, association or organization of any kind, violates sub. (1) (a) shall be fined not more than $2,000 or imprisoned in the county jail for not more than one year or both.

(3) Any worker who is influenced, induced or persuaded to engage with any person specified in sub. (1) (a), through or by means of any of the acts prohibited in sub. (1) (a), shall have a right of action for recovery of all damages that the worker sustains in consequence of the false or deceptive representation, false advertising or false pretenses used to induce the worker to change his or her place of employment in this state or to accept employment in this state, against any person, corporation, company or association, directly or indirectly, causing the damage. In addition to all actual damages that the worker may sustain, the worker shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorney fees as determined by the court, to be taxed as costs in any judgment recovered.

History: 1993 a. 492; 1995 a. 225; 1997 a. 253.

This section applies only to manual laborers, particularly those in industrial labor. Bellon v. Ripon College, 2005 WI App 29, 278 Wis. 2d 790, 693 N.W.2d 330, 04-0515.