Is my husband owed back pay?

Husband, an engineer, was fired. His paycheck stubs always showed a 2 week lag in pay (i.e. paycheck for the first of the month of May showed pay dates for the first 2 weeks of April). His final paycheck did not include the 2 week lag. Boss said the dates on stubs were to account his vacation time and not work hours. Department of labor won't help because he is a professional and made over a certain amount. They recommend we go to small claims. We have no evidence other than pay stubs. He worked there for 9 years and can't find any paper work about how he was to be compensated. Are the pay stubs enough evidence for small claims?