105.06 Application; bond.

(1) Application for an employment agent's license shall be made to the department and accompanied by a bond in due form to the state for the penal sum of $5,000 issued by a surety company licensed to do business in this state to be approved by the department, conditioned that the agent will conform to and not violate this chapter or the rules of the department issued thereunder.

(1m)

(a) Except as provided in par. (bm), the department shall require each applicant for a license under sub. (1) who is an individual to provide the department with the applicant's social security number, and shall require each applicant for a license under sub. (1) who is not an individual to provide the department with the applicant's federal employer identification number, when initially applying for or applying to renew the license.

(b) If an applicant who is an individual fails to provide the applicant's social security number to the department or if an applicant who is not an individual fails to provide the applicant's federal employer identification number to the department, the department may not issue or renew a license under sub. (1) to or for the applicant unless the applicant is an individual who does not have a social security number and the applicant submits a statement made or subscribed under oath or affirmation as required under par. (bm).

(bm) If an applicant who is an individual does not have a social security number, the applicant shall submit a statement made or subscribed under oath or affirmation to the department that the applicant does not have a social security number. The form of the statement shall be prescribed by the department. A license issued under sub. (1) in reliance upon a false statement submitted under this paragraph is invalid.

(c) The department of workforce development may not disclose any information received under par. (a) to any person except to the department of revenue for the sole purpose of requesting certifications under s. 73.0301 or the department of children and families for purposes of administering s. 49.22.

(2) Persons whose fees or charges are paid directly by employers shall register annually with the department to engage in the business specified in s. 105.01 (1) (intro.). The fee to register under this subsection is $5, except that no registration fee is required for an individual who is eligible for a fee waiver under the veterans fee waiver program under s. 45.44.

History: 1973 c. 226; 1989 a. 220; 1997 a. 191, 237; 1999 a. 9; 2009 a. 180; 2011 a. 209.

As evidenced by the exclusion of employer-paid agents from the definition of employment agents in s. 105.01 (1) and by the paucity of provisions applying to employer-paid agents versus employment agents in ch. 105 and the Wisconsin Administrative Code, the only reasonable inference that can be drawn is that the legislature saw less need to protect the public interest from inappropriate actions of employer-paid employment agents and consequently intended to apply less stringent supervision over them. A contract made with an employer-paid agent is void if that agent is not registered with the state at the time of execution and performance of the contract. Kleewood, Inc. v. Hart Design & Mfg., Inc. 2006 WI App 264, 297 Wis. 2d 805, 727 N.W.2d 87, 06-0416.