3 ms·

The study estimates that $8b is taken from mostly lower income employees via wage theft. "What is wage theft? Wage theft is the failure to pay workers the ful

The study estimates that $8b is taken from mostly lower income employees via wage theft. "What is wage theft? Wage theft is the failure to pay workers the full wages to which they are legally entitled. Wage theft can take many forms, including but not limited to: * Minimum wage violations: Paying workers less than the legal minimum wage * Overtime violations: Failing to pay nonexempt employees time-and-a-half for hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week * Off-the-clock violations: Asking employees to work off-the-clock before or after their shifts * Meal break violations: Denying workers their legal meal breaks * Pay stub and illegal deductions: Taking illegal deductions from wages or not distributing pay stubs * Tipped minimum wage violations: Confiscating tips from workers or failing to pay tipped workers the difference between their tips and the legal minimum wage * Employee misclassification violations: Misclassifying employees as independent contractors to pay a wage lower than the legal minimum For more information about the different forms of wage theft, see Bernhardt et al. (2009) or Gordon et al. (2012)." Over the course of my working life, I've personally experienced or witnessed all of these except one. They're all pretty common in the US in lower income jobs.

sxyuan 9y ago
I believe the $8b figure is actually referring to just wage theft via minimum wage violations, in the 10 states analysed in the study. The totally amount lost to all forms of wage theft across the US is likely much, much higher. From the article: "In these [10 most populous] states, 2.4 million workers lose $8 billion annually (an average of $3,300 per year for year-round workers) to minimum wage violations."
mjevans 9y ago
I really hate that service industry jobs can price in tipping as part of the 'wage' for the worker. I'd much rather the employees just be paid a fair wage up front and that no tipping would be allowed at the establishment.
- arjie 9y ago
  Tipped minimum wage is not a thing in California. You have to pay minimum wage irrespective of how much the employee made in tips.
- StudentStuff 9y ago
  States like Washington & California don't support tip slavery, the business has to pay tipped workers full minimum wage.
- rascul 9y ago
  They are still required to pay the difference if wage + tips is less than minimum wage. If an employer violates any part of wage laws, state and federal departments of labor loves to take these cases in my experience. https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/wagestips https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/wagestips
pmoriarty 9y ago
"Overtime violations: Failing to pay nonexempt employees time-and-a-half for hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week" I'd say not paying even "exempt" employees for overtime is wage theft as well. It's just that the laws haven't caught up with that reality yet, and those "exempt" employees haven't managed to stand up for their rights yet.
- ams6110 9y ago
  Well the theory anyway is that nonexempt employees are paid for their time, while exempt employees are paid for doing a job (regardless of whether accomplishing that job takes them 30 or 50 hours a week, or may from time to time unexpectedly take more or less than the "standard" 40 hours). I'm sure the IRS has much more detailed criteria.
  - pmoriarty 9y ago
    So if a job takes 24 hours a day to do, every day, and the employee can't physically or psychologically do that then they're not doing their job? No. I don't buy that. You have to draw the line somewhere, and I thought the war for this line was won long ago in favor of a 40 hour work week. But I guess not all workers have won this right yet.
tnzn 9y ago
over the course of only one month at a famous european fast food restaurant during summer, I've experienced : * Minimum wage violations: Paying workers less than the legal minimum wage * Overtime violations: Failing to pay nonexempt employees time-and-a-half for hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week * Off-the-clock violations: Asking employees to work off-the-clock before or after their shifts * Meal break violations: Denying workers their legal meal breaks + in France, if your meal break takes place on your workplace and you can be called back to work during it, it HAS to be paid all the time because it's like an "astreinte" (dunno the word in English), yet they don't pay it and still called us back pretty often. The employees wanted to sue the restaurant but needed the job...

sxyuan 9y ago

I believe the $8b figure is actually referring to just wage theft via minimum wage violations, in the 10 states analysed in the study. The totally amount lost to all forms of wage theft across the US is likely much, much higher. From the article: "In these [10 most populous] states, 2.4 million workers lose $8 billion annually (an average of $3,300 per year for year-round workers) to minimum wage violations."

mjevans 9y ago

I really hate that service industry jobs can price in tipping as part of the 'wage' for the worker. I'd much rather the employees just be paid a fair wage up front and that no tipping would be allowed at the establishment.

arjie 9y ago
Tipped minimum wage is not a thing in California. You have to pay minimum wage irrespective of how much the employee made in tips.
StudentStuff 9y ago
States like Washington & California don't support tip slavery, the business has to pay tipped workers full minimum wage.
rascul 9y ago
They are still required to pay the difference if wage + tips is less than minimum wage. If an employer violates any part of wage laws, state and federal departments of labor loves to take these cases in my experience. https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/wagestips https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/wagestips

pmoriarty 9y ago

"Overtime violations: Failing to pay nonexempt employees time-and-a-half for hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week" I'd say not paying even "exempt" employees for overtime is wage theft as well. It's just that the laws haven't caught up with that reality yet, and those "exempt" employees haven't managed to stand up for their rights yet.

ams6110 9y ago
Well the theory anyway is that nonexempt employees are paid for their time, while exempt employees are paid for doing a job (regardless of whether accomplishing that job takes them 30 or 50 hours a week, or may from time to time unexpectedly take more or less than the "standard" 40 hours). I'm sure the IRS has much more detailed criteria.
- pmoriarty 9y ago
  So if a job takes 24 hours a day to do, every day, and the employee can't physically or psychologically do that then they're not doing their job? No. I don't buy that. You have to draw the line somewhere, and I thought the war for this line was won long ago in favor of a 40 hour work week. But I guess not all workers have won this right yet.

tnzn 9y ago

over the course of only one month at a famous european fast food restaurant during summer, I've experienced : * Minimum wage violations: Paying workers less than the legal minimum wage * Overtime violations: Failing to pay nonexempt employees time-and-a-half for hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week * Off-the-clock violations: Asking employees to work off-the-clock before or after their shifts * Meal break violations: Denying workers their legal meal breaks + in France, if your meal break takes place on your workplace and you can be called back to work during it, it HAS to be paid all the time because it's like an "astreinte" (dunno the word in English), yet they don't pay it and still called us back pretty often. The employees wanted to sue the restaurant but needed the job...