Tag Archives: wage theft

Increase in Wage Theft Claims

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Today’s blog post was written by guest author Leonard Jernigan from The Jernigan Law Firm in North Carolina. Firm associate Brody Ockander also brought The New York Times story to my attention that Mr. Jernigan references. Here’s the link to the original story from the Times: More Workers Are Claiming ‘Wage Theft’. The firm’s blog has also included previous stories about wage theft, specifically Wage Theft Is Illegal And Immoral, written by Mr. Jernigan, and Wage Theft Another Assault on Workers’ Compensation, which was shared by Gelman on Workplace Injuries. As Mr. Jernigan uses North Carolina as an example, pretty much every state has a version of a Department of Labor that handles wage-theft issues. Here is a link to Nebraska’s form: Filing a Wage Complaint. In addition, many attorneys can be a resource for a person in this situation so please contact an experienced attorney, including those at our firm, if you have questions about a specific situation.

According to a recent article in The New York Times (Sept. 1, 2014), more workers are claiming wage theft by their employers. Worker advocates assert that violations of minimum wage and overtime laws, erasure of work hours and wrongful takings of employees’ tips are increasing in volume.

David Weil is the director of the federal Labor Department’s wage and hour division. Since 2010, Mr. Weil’s agency has uncovered almost $1 billion in illegally unpaid wages, with a disproportionate amount of immigrant victims. Weil believes the surge in wage theft is due to underlying changes in the national business structure. As large employers increase franchise operations as well as use of subcontractors and temp agencies, these companies deny any knowledge of wage violations.

A federal appeals court in California recently ruled that FedEx committed wage theft by labeling its drivers as independent contractors to avoid having to pay them overtime. New York’s attorney general, Eric T. Schneiderman, has recovered $17 million in wage claims over the past three years and in Nashville last February nine Doubletree hotel housekeepers were paid $12,000 in back wages owed by the hotel’s subcontractor. Wage theft is prevalent in North Carolina as well. According to the N.C Department of Labor 2012-13 Wage and Hour Bureau Annual Report, 4,244 complaints were investigated. Out of an estimated $2.4 million due, almost 73% of unpaid wages (over $1.79 million) were recovered for 2,168 workers. To file a wage dispute claim in North Carolina, contact the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Bureau at 919-807-2796 or 1-800-NC-LABOR.

The offices of Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm, which also sponsors the Trucker Lawyers website, are located in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. Five attorneys represent plaintiffs in workers’ compensation, personal injury, employment and Social Security disability claims. The firm’s lawyers have combined experience of more than 95 years of practice representing injured workers and truck drivers in Nebraska, Iowa and other states with Nebraska and Iowa jurisdiction. The lawyers regularly represent hurt truck drivers and often sue Crete Carrier Corporation, K&B Trucking, Werner Enterprises, UPS, and FedEx. Lawyers in the firm hold licenses in Nebraska and Iowa and are active in groups such as the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG), American Association for Justice (AAJ), the Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys (NATA), and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). We have the knowledge, experience and toughness to win rightful compensation for people who have been injured or mistreated.

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Wage Theft Is Illegal And Immoral

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Kim Bobo

Today’s post comes from guest author Leonard Jernigan, from The Jernigan Law Firm in North Carolina. Generally, a person tips for good service, and many of the folks who work for tips don’t even get minimum wage, so they rely on those tips to live. But what happens when a business withholds tips? It can be really challenging for workers, indeed, and is not all right. On this day of social justice, service, and reflection of Dr. King’s life and legacy, I think the action items listed below are excellent choices to start a discussion with someone about wage theft and how the wages workers make also affect both the workers themselves and are a reflection of society. The Nebraska Legislature will soon be having a variation on this discussion with a bill, LB943, to increase the minimum wage to $9 an hour over three years. Other bills this session that address challenges workers may face include increasing the earned income tax credit and the “Paid Family Medical Leave Act (LB955), which would protect employees from income losses caused by the need to take off time to care for newborns or other family members,” according to this article in the Lincoln Journal Star. This includes up to six weeks a year off for eligible employees covered by the federal Family Leave Act. I hope that today allows reflection about the importance of how Dr. King’s work advocating for workers and social justice continues. And, seriously, please remember to tip your servers if you have the luxury of eating out today.

Kim Bobo, the Executive Director of Interfaith Worker Justice and the author of “Wage Theft in America,” recently spoke at Duke Divinity School and then at N.C. Central University School of Law in Durham, N.C. Ms. Bobo, who was awarded the Pacem in Terris Peace Award in 2012 (other recipients are John F. Kennedy, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King, Jr.), has a simple reason for the work she does: as a person of faith, she recognizes injustice and seeks to correct it. Wage theft, which is defined as stealing from workers what they have rightfully earned, is not only illegal it is immoral. She is simply trying to get people to do something about it.

In September a $4 million settlement was announced by the Harvard Club of Boston for not paying tips to its staff.

At N.C Central law school, Bobo spoke to students about waiters not getting tips, even though the restaurant collected those tips when the bill was paid, and asked if anyone in the room had experienced that type of theft. Indeed, one student shared a story about working at an exclusive club in South Carolina where that practice was routine. After reporting the problem and getting nowhere, he finally gave up and quit. He is still bitter about it. In September, a $4 million settlement was announced by the Harvard Club of Boston for not paying tips to its staff. Small amounts can add up for the employer.

Bobo gave some action items to the audience that I wanted to share with you.  She said we need to:

  • start recognizing the seriousness of the problem;
  • start getting attention about the problem in order to fix it;
  • stay focused; and
  • if necessary, cross of the lines of our comfort zone.

For more information about Interfaith Worker Justice, go to: www.iwj.org/

 

The offices of Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm, which also sponsors the Trucker Lawyers website, are located in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. Five attorneys represent plaintiffs in workers’ compensation, personal injury, employment and Social Security disability claims. The firm’s lawyers have combined experience of more than 95 years of practice representing injured workers and truck drivers in Nebraska, Iowa and other states with Nebraska and Iowa jurisdiction. The lawyers regularly represent hurt truck drivers and often sue Crete Carrier Corporation, K&B Trucking, Werner Enterprises, UPS, and FedEx. Lawyers in the firm hold licenses in Nebraska and Iowa and are active in groups such as the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG), American Association for Justice (AAJ), the Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys (NATA), and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). We have the knowledge, experience and toughness to win rightful compensation for people who have been injured or mistreated.

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