WASHINGTON — Across the country, many working-class Americans are struggling to make ends meet. One reason why is because their wages are being stolen from employers who are not paying them what they are legally owed. These employers either pay less than the minimum or agreed-upon wage, refuse to pay for overtime at the legally required rate, take secretive deductions from paychecks, withhold earned tips, fail to make final payments, or demand unpaid work after a shift has ended.
Today, the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) released a new report titled “Ensuring Working Americans Get Paid What They Deserve,” which proposes new measures to combat wage theft. Report author Alex Kilander, Policy Analyst for PPI’s Center for Funding America’s Future, argues that former President Trump’s campaign proposal to end taxes on tips and overtime will not meaningfully increase the take-home pay for the employees that need it most, and Democratic policymakers should instead pass legislation that expands the legal toolbox for wage theft enforcement in order to help working Americans.
This new publication is the eighth in a series of papers published in PPI’s Campaign for Working America, which was launched earlier this year in partnership with former U.S. Representative Tim Ryan of Ohio. The Campaign aims to develop and test new themes, ideas, and policy proposals that help Democrats and other center-left leaders make a compelling economic offer to working Americans, bridge divides on culturally sensitive issues like immigration and education, and rally public support for the defense of democracy and freedom globally. Other papers cover career paths for non-college workers, housing, and competition.
Kilander emphasizes that lawmakers need to increase the low civil penalty for initial wage theft offenders while ensuring escalating penalties for repeat offenders. This will prevent employers from stealing money from their employees’ pockets in the first place and heavily punish those who continue to do it, and replace the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) that is now in charge of preventing wage theft. However, the WHD struggles to maintain consistent enforcement actions and resolve cases quickly, forcing the agency to pare back how many cases it can accept.
“Tackling wage theft, a crime that takes thousands of dollars out of working Americans’ pockets each year, will do far more to improve the lives of the millions of tipped and overtime workers who are at risk of being cheated than misguided tax proposals,” said Kilander. “Our government should not stand idly by as dishonest employers steal billions of dollars each year from working Americans who have rightfully earned their wages. We need to make sure that employers are held accountable for their actions and stop hurting the American people.”
Read and download the report here.
The Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) is a catalyst for policy innovation and political reform based in Washington, D.C. Its mission is to create radically pragmatic ideas for moving America beyond ideological and partisan deadlock. Learn more about PPI by visiting progressivepolicy.org. Find an expert at PPI and follow us on Twitter.
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Media Contact: Ian O’Keefe – iokeefe@ppionline.org
