Sad truths regarding wage theft:

• Only a fraction of Americans fully understand what “wage theft” means

• A considerable number of Americans have personally experienced or know someone who has experienced wage theft

• Fear of reprisals and lack of knowledge prevents many from reporting wage theft, and among those who did report wage theft, many did not receive their wages back

• The construction industry is among the top three sectors associated with wage theft, alongside food service and retail, leading to weakened trust in the sector

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Wage theft is the denial of wages or employee benefits that are rightfully due. Often times this takes the form of misclassifying a worker as an independent contractor (1099) when they should be an employee (W2).

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Wage theft can take many forms, including but not limited to: 

• Not paying overtime 

• Not paying for all hours worked 

• Not providing required breaks 

• Deducting money from paychecks for unauthorized reasons 

• Requiring employees to work off the clock 

• Not paying employees for required training 

• Not paying employees for required uniforms or equipment 

• Falsifying time records