Posted on 06/25/2024
ONE BIG THING: THE WAGE THEFT CAPITAL OF AMERICA
A new study found a stunning number of minimum wage violations across California, and confirmed the disappointing reality that Los Angeles remains the Wage Theft Capital of the United States:
- In the LA area, $1.6 billion to $2.5 billion is stolen from workers every year due to minimum wage violations.
- Over 12% of workers (nearly 650,000 workers) in the LA area get paid less than the minimum wage.
- Workers who get paid below minimum wage lose an average of 20% of their paycheck to wage theft.
- Minimum wage violations have more than doubled since 2014.
Who’s Victimized by Minimum Wage Violations?
The study points out some key disparities among victims of minimum wage violations based on individual characteristics:
- No college degree – 3.1x more likely to get paid below minimum wage vs. college degree
- Latinx workers – 2.1x more likely vs. white workers
- Black workers – 1.7x more likely vs. white workers
- Noncitizens – 1.7x more likely vs. citizens
- Women – 1.3x more likely vs. men
- Asian workers – 1.2x more likely vs. white workers
The research also shows that some occupations are more vulnerable to wage theft, especially workers employed by private households like nannies, cleaners, and landscapers. Below is a table of industries and jobs where we frequently see minimum wage violations.
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Why it Matters
These 650,000 workers in the LA Metro Area are forced to get by on an average of just $17,430/year. In other words, these workers are at incredibly high risk of falling into homelessness if they aren’t already unhoused.
When you learn that multinational corporations are stealing up to $2.5 billion from nearly 650,000 of LA’s most vulnerable workers, it makes a lot more sense that our city is facing unprecedented homelessness and inequality.
Even though these corporations will spend millions in PR campaigns blaming our problems on everything else besides their own greed, it’s imperative that we remain focused on the scale and impact of these crimes.
What's Next?
Our office has led the fight to improve wage theft enforcement in LA, but we have a long way to go.
Last year, we passed legislation with Councilmember Tim McOsker to improve and expand how the city responds to wage theft complaints, but we still have no way to proactively investigate wage theft before receiving a complaint.
That’s why we introduced a motion with Councilmember Curren Price to allocate $721,000 in city funds to set up a proactive wage theft enforcement team in the city. Given the city’s budget deficit, it’ll be an uphill battle to get this money approved. But we know that this program won’t just pay for itself in the long run – it will benefit the most marginalized workers in LA who need our help the most.
Our motion was referred to the Budget & Finance Committee for a hearing, and it would have to be approved by that committee before being voted on by the full City Council.
Two More Quick Hits!
1. Minimum Wage Increase to $17.28/hr on July 1
$17.28/hr is still not nearly enough to get by in LA, but given that over 12% of Angelenos make less than the current minimum wage, we know that this increase can make the difference when it comes to paying rent and putting food on the table.
For more information visit wagesla.lacity.org
2. 10 New Bus Shelters in District 13
Did you know that only 1 in 4 bus stops in LA currently have shade/shelter?
Shade is essential for workers who rely on public transit, especially during the hot summer months. So we want to make sure that at least 75% of bus stops in CD13 have shade, and thanks to our work with StreetsLA, we’ll be installing 10 new bus shelters in the next few months at the locations below.
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