DC Council Passes Stronger Protections Against Wage Theft
Monday, July 1, 2013(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)
DC workers scored a major victory last week when
the DC
Council passed the Wage Theft Prevention Act as part of this year’s District
budget. The Act contained unprecedented protections against wage theft,
including allowing for damages up to triple the unpaid wages when businesses
steal from their employees. “This is a huge leap forward for DC workers,”
said
EJC Deputy Director Ari Weisbard. “Without sufficient damages for wage theft
violations, there is nothing to deter unscrupulous employers from stealing
their workers’ wages and workers receive no compensation for all of the
difficulties they experience when they have to wait for months to be paid what
they’re owed.” The path for the legislation was paved by big mobilizations
and
organizing by the DC Wage Theft Coalition, which includes workers, unions, and
nonprofit organizations like the Employment Justice Center, DC Jobs with
Justice, Our DC, and the Restaurant Opportunities Center-DC. “We are all
victims of wage theft,” said Howard Mayo, a lifelong DC resident and EJC
activist. “First the victimized worker, and then the D.C. taxpayers who
support
those workers who later must rely on the overburdened rolls of human services
agencies.”
- based on a longer report on the EJC website. Photo: Workers deliver
1,500
petition signatures to Capital Bikeshare demanding payment of over $100,000 in
back wages and benefits; photo courtesy DC EJC