Wage Theft

Wage theft is the illegal practice of withholding wages or benefits that are owed to an employee. It can include failing to pay overtime, paying less than the minimum wage, making illegal deductions from paychecks, or misclassifying workers to avoid paying certain benefits. Wage theft is a serious problem that affects workers in many industries, and can have significant financial and emotional consequences for workers and their families. It is important for workers to be aware of their rights and to know how to report wage theft if it occurs. Governments and advocacy groups also play a role in preventing and addressing wage theft through education, enforcement, and other means.

 

 

Fight against wage theft reignites in Minnesota as complaints rise
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Fight against wage theft reignites in Minnesota as complaints rise

Roberto Jacobo is an immigrant who estimates he lost $90,000 in income over 15 years as a home remodeler because his employers did not pay him his owed overtime or prevailing wage on jobs. For years he stayed quiet, afraid his employers would retaliate because he is an immigrant. Then he decided enough is enough…

‘A lot of abuse for little pay’: how US farming profits from exploitation and brutality
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‘A lot of abuse for little pay’: how US farming profits from exploitation and brutality

Two dozen conspirators forced workers to pay fees for travel and housing while forcing them to work for little to no pay. In June, a farm worker from Mexico, who requested to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation, was transported through a trafficking network from Monterey to work on farms in Georgia. They paid the…

'I had nowhere to go': Labor traffickers are taking advantage of the Massachusetts housing crisis
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'I had nowhere to go': Labor traffickers are taking advantage of the Massachusetts housing crisis

For eight months, Julio worked as a landscaper in Western Massachusetts, hauling rocks, digging ditches and pulling weeds about 70 hours a week, earning less than two dollars an hour. At night, tired and hungry, the Guatemalan immigrant would be driven back to his employer’s suburban home, where he would head down to the basement…

Lawmakers want investigation, hearings into 'Wild West' of California cannabis and farm work
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Lawmakers want investigation, hearings into 'Wild West' of California cannabis and farm work

California lawmakers are calling for a sweeping investigation into corruption in the state’s cannabis industry, legislative hearings on the exploitation of farmworkers and new laws to thwart labor trafficking in response to revelations of rampant abuses and worker deaths in a multibillion-dollar market that has become increasingly unmanageable. The proposals follow a series of Times…

Tesco faces lawsuit from low-paid factory workers sewing F&F jeans – Fashion United
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Tesco faces lawsuit from low-paid factory workers sewing F&F jeans – Fashion United

Tesco is facing a lawsuit over allegations that jeans from its F&F fashion range were made under forced labour conditions. The supermarket giant, which retails jeans for 16 pounds, is being sued by 130 former workers from VK Garment Factury, a Thailand-based apparel manufacturer. Allegations include working 99-hour weeks for less than 4 pounds per…

Biden's Deputies Use ICE Agents to Raise Pay for Illegal Workers – Breitbart
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Biden's Deputies Use ICE Agents to Raise Pay for Illegal Workers – Breitbart

President Joe Biden is directing the nation’s deportation agents to raise pay for the millions of illegal migrants who are pushing many older, slower, and sicker Americans out of the workforce. The new policy from border chief Alejandro Mayorkas dangles the promise of temporary residency permits to illegals who report workplace abuse by employers. The…

'Working like a slave': Why human trafficking in restaurants is underreported – WGBH
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'Working like a slave': Why human trafficking in restaurants is underreported – WGBH

Working in Boston-area restaurants over the last 15 years, Billy often felt like a slave. He was caught in a seemingly never-ending cycle of labor and exploitation, striving to pay off debts, sick from stress and overwork, terrified about being turned over to immigration officials. The 41-year-old Salvadoran immigrant said he started his first restaurant…

U.S. Guest Worker Visa Program expands rapidly – and, with it, worker abuse and exploitation
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U.S. Guest Worker Visa Program expands rapidly – and, with it, worker abuse and exploitation

The U.S. government is expanding its non-agricultural temporary worker visa (H-2B) program to “unprecedented” levels. H-2B workers are tied to their employers making it difficult for them to leave their jobs. Unscrupulous employers take advantage of this, charging exorbitant recruitment fees or withholding wages knowing that they can get away with it. Members of Congress…

Migrant workers: Qatar still to answer for mass wage theft
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Migrant workers: Qatar still to answer for mass wage theft

In conversation, Indian migrant workers to Qatar confirmed this account to me. They were laid off and repatriated without clearing their end-of-service benefits and unpaid salaries following the Covid-19 outbreak. Migrants rights NGOs, meanwhile, catalogued case after case of wage theft happening to migrant workers in Qatar, the wider Gulf, and other major destination countries….

The Global Estimates: a call to action this International Day for the Abolition of Slavery
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The Global Estimates: a call to action this International Day for the Abolition of Slavery

Today marks the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery. This day is focused on countering contemporary forms of slavery, such as forced labour, debt bondage, forced marriage, and human trafficking. In September this year, the new Global Estimates of Modern Slavery were released by Walk Free, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the International…