4 ms·

If this is over the normal course of business and spread out over years, as it would be for workers not getting paid a few minutes preparing their workstation b

If this is over the normal course of business and spread out over years, as it would be for workers not getting paid a few minutes preparing their workstation before their shift, or not having rest breaks, then it’s an implied (or explicit!) part of the employment contract and not actually any sort of scam. Assigning the word “theft” is dishonest.

fisherjeff 5y ago
Not a lawyer but I would not advise writing “we will disregard federal labor law” into an employment agreement
- CheezeIt 5y ago
  You’re relying to an imaginary version of my comment.
  - eschaton 5y ago
    Not really; you’re saying that these violations of the law can become implicitly part of the terms of work and should be accepted as such, when they’re violations of the law and therefore cannot be considered part of the terms of work.
    - CheezeIt 5y ago
      I didn’t say “no rest breaks” would be in a written contract. The first three or four jobs I had, there was no written contract. Illegal aliens somehow manage to have agreements with people paying them money. Lawmakers disagreeing with your terms of employment doesn’t have any bearing on the meaning of “theft”. The fact that you’re coming up with such convoluted legalistic reasoning shows what a lie it is.
      - fisherjeff 5y ago
        Not sure why you’re so hung up on the “theft” part of this. Look, you worked some amount of time for which federal law says you must be paid but you weren’t. Even if you agreed to those terms, implicitly or explicitly in a verbal or written contract, it’s absolutely still illegal. So someone is in possession of wages to which you are (and, very explicitly, they are not) legally entitled. You can come up with whatever term you like for this situation but personally I think “theft” is remarkably straightforward and appropriate.
ineptech 5y ago
"No one knows precisely how many instances of wage theft occurred in the U.S. during 2012, nor do we know what the victims suffered in total dollars earned but not paid. But we do know that the total amount of money recovered for the victims of wage theft who retained private lawyers or complained to federal or state agencies was at least $933 million—almost three times greater than all the money stolen in robberies that year." -- TFA

fisherjeff 5y ago

Not a lawyer but I would not advise writing “we will disregard federal labor law” into an employment agreement

CheezeIt 5y ago
You’re relying to an imaginary version of my comment.
- eschaton 5y ago
  Not really; you’re saying that these violations of the law can become implicitly part of the terms of work and should be accepted as such, when they’re violations of the law and therefore cannot be considered part of the terms of work.
  - CheezeIt 5y ago
    I didn’t say “no rest breaks” would be in a written contract. The first three or four jobs I had, there was no written contract. Illegal aliens somehow manage to have agreements with people paying them money. Lawmakers disagreeing with your terms of employment doesn’t have any bearing on the meaning of “theft”. The fact that you’re coming up with such convoluted legalistic reasoning shows what a lie it is.
    - fisherjeff 5y ago
      Not sure why you’re so hung up on the “theft” part of this. Look, you worked some amount of time for which federal law says you must be paid but you weren’t. Even if you agreed to those terms, implicitly or explicitly in a verbal or written contract, it’s absolutely still illegal. So someone is in possession of wages to which you are (and, very explicitly, they are not) legally entitled. You can come up with whatever term you like for this situation but personally I think “theft” is remarkably straightforward and appropriate.

ineptech 5y ago

"No one knows precisely how many instances of wage theft occurred in the U.S. during 2012, nor do we know what the victims suffered in total dollars earned but not paid. But we do know that the total amount of money recovered for the victims of wage theft who retained private lawyers or complained to federal or state agencies was at least $933 million—almost three times greater than all the money stolen in robberies that year." -- TFA