For Labor Day, Religion Dispatches asked if you Want to Love Your Neighbor? RD cites the shocking treatment of workers and violations of fair labor laws:
Fully 26 percent of workers were paid less than the legally-required minimum wage, and 60 percent of those underpaid were underpaid by more than $1 per hour.
Of those who worked overtime, 75 percent were not paid the legally-required overtime.
Nearly a quarter of the workers came in early or stayed late after their shift. Of these workers, 70 percent did not receive any or all the pay for this work.
Of the workers entitled to a meal break, two-thirds were cheated of part or all of it.
Among the tipped workers, 30 percent were not paid the tipped worker minimum wage (which in Illinois and New York is lower than the regular wage) and 12 percent had tips stolen by their employer or supervisor.
What can we do to Love our Neighbor?
Conduct your own wage theft survey to learn about problems faced by workers in your congregation, campus, or community. The survey you conduct need not have the rigor of “Broken Laws, Unprotected Workers,” but it will help you understand wage theft in your own community.
Ask how workers are paid when you hire a firm to do work.
Are workers paid overtime as required by law?
Are the workers paid as employees or misclassified as independent contractors (which cheats workers and public coffers)?
Do workers get health insurance, paid vacations, and paid sick days?
If you or your organization are hiring a firm, you can ask questions about how workers are paid.
Support local and national efforts to improve wage enforcement. This Labor Day, there are dozens of initiatives to strengthen wage enforcement at the local and national levels. Join a campaign to pass new anti-wage theft laws. Volunteer in a worker center. Honor and applaud ethical employers in your community.
If you love your neighbor, make sure that neighbor is paid.
See more in The Lead.
And for places where companies and labor are working together click here.