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Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

theguardian.com

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Re: Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

#361

Post by iinnPP »

nonrandomstring wrote: post #251
londons_explore wrote: post #196

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Universities, unlike building firms, have actual assets and are unlikely to claim bankruptcy. That means you could easily take the above issues to small claims court as long as you had them in writing (and remember, even a agreement to pay you via email usually suffices - no formal documents or signatures required)

You're not wrong, but my goodness... the effort, and the waiting. It's so sapping to have to work for your money like a regular person, and then work again and again just to get what's rightfully due to you.

This is a very important point that a lot of folks miss. You van spend hundreds or even thousands of hours getting what is obviously due and often that is all lost.

I have let many people go who I would persue in a world with my hours being paid(at a lawyers rate) in the event of a victory in the courtroom.

Ahhh, should land...

Re: Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

#362

Post by tristor »

HeatrayEnjoyer wrote: post #355
tristor wrote: post #321

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Does that mean everyone wants to be a waiter and nobody wants to be a CEO? Unironically, yes. Most people don't have enough exposure to actually understand what the job of a CEO is. I have had that exposure, and I don't ever want to be the CEO of any sizeable company. Once you become CEO, work/life balance utterly ceases to exist, because you are the person imbued as the corporation, meaning you are literally alway…

This is no worse than the demands beared by countless $12/hr general managers.

> This is no worse than the demands beared by countless $12/hr general managers.

That is grossly incorrect. Also, general managers don't make $12/hr. The average general manager in the US makes ~$87k/yr, and can be as high as $150k/yr, and depending on the specific industry you can end up with relatively sizeable compensation based on profit sharing and bonus structures. A general manager typically oversees a single location of a much larger business entity, with oversight for less than 500 staff, compared to a CEO that may have tens of thousands of people and their myriad workstreams that they are trying to weave into some unified vision/strategy plus dealing with the personnel challenges that go with that scale.

I realize you were trying to be pithy, but let's not do that on HN.

Re: Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

#363

Post by iinnPP »

Cheer2171 wrote: post #100
nonrandomstring wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You think the construction industry is illegal. Wait till you hear about academia!! :) This is the life today for zero-hours, at-will employment in the university sector. As a visiting professor I've had universities ask me to deliver a semester course a year in advance, and call the week before to say they're not running it. At the very minimum a 12 week course takes 40 hours of preparation even if you're just refre…

US academia has its problems, but UK academia is a whole different nightmare.

Canada would like a word. When 35% of a test is easily verified as incorrect and nobody is willing to fix it.

Rain days.... Too cold days(-5°c)...

Re: Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

#364

Post by yardie »

Jensson wrote: post #215
ToucanLoucan wrote: post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you want to demonstrate to someone why the legal system is designed for the wealthy and not the common people, I don't think you can do better than the entire subject of wage theft. Wage theft utterly eclipses every other form of larceny in the United States at least, and it is practically legal in every way apart from the letter of the law. Few companies ever see any consequences at all, and the few that do, it's…

> Wage theft utterly eclipses every other form of larceny in the United States at least If you define being late with payments as theft, then I'd bet that rent theft is way larger than wage theft. I don't see why you would say that it is theft when you are late with payments to a worker but not theft when you are late with payments to a company. If being late with payments isn't theft, then "wage theft" isn't theft,…

Considering most rentals require a first, last, and deposit there is no theft. There is only failure to meet the terms of the lease.

Re: Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

#365

Post by tristor »

yen223 wrote: post #341
tristor wrote: post #321

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Does that mean everyone wants to be a waiter and nobody wants to be a CEO? Unironically, yes. Most people don't have enough exposure to actually understand what the job of a CEO is. I have had that exposure, and I don't ever want to be the CEO of any sizeable company. Once you become CEO, work/life balance utterly ceases to exist, because you are the person imbued as the corporation, meaning you are literally alway…

I have yet to see a CEO choose to go back down the food chain, even though that is something they have the power to do.

Typically the way it works is the comp structure is such that after a few years in the role you can semi-retire. The goal of anyone who is a CEO is to try throw their hat in the ring, hopefully do a good job, and then step away to help other people who want to be CEOs. Generally they do this by taking on board seats or becoming an investor. The average CEO tenure is 7 years and the median is 5 years[1]. This is not a job you can do for a long time without it basically killing you due to the stress.

I'm sure you've seen all the before/after pictures they always do for POTUS. If you saw similar photos for folks becoming CEOs of a major company, you'd see a similar change. Being a CEO is a job that will literally run you ragged. It destroys your health, and is not something most people can tolerate for longer than a decade.

[1]: https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2018/02/12/ceo-tenure-rates/

Re: Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

#366

Post by teeray »

nickff wrote: post #337
teeray wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Justice delayed is justice denied. There should be an express lane where you collect those wages from social security and employers just get an unavoidable tax bill.

The 'express lane' would be rife with fraud, unless you re-implement a court system, in which case it'll be slow again.

Right, but at least you’d be defrauding the federal government, which tends to be punished readily enough that there’s an actual deterrent.

Re: Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

#367

Post by BobaFloutist »

phpisthebest wrote: post #225
BobaFloutist wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And then they get mad that the teenagers they made a point of hiring are irresponsible, unreliable, and have limited experience working. You know, teenagers.

I started working at 16, at a walmart. I only called sick a handful of times, never was late, and did my job to the best of my ability. it is called work ethic. I started at $0.25 above minimum wage, as we given several raises, and position changes by the time I left at age 18, why because I was one of the most reliable teens they had, and they did not want me to go to another employer. Some parents instill work ethi…

I think it's actually developmentally inappropriate for teenagers to have that level of work ethic. A teenager has far too many things on their plate at school to dedicate that much of their energy and motivation to Walmart, even ignoring the cost to their social and cognitive development.

Re: Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

#368

Post by larsrc »

I happened to find out what the Danish laws for not getting paid on time are, as the company I was working for got into financial trouble. If you're not paid on time, you can send a letter setting a deadline for the payment - typically a week or two. If you're not paid by then, you get to declare the company bankrupt. You can stop working, and you will get the next three month's payment from a state-run fund, even if you find other work. Isn't socialism just wonderful?

Re: Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

#369

Post by ludwigDual »

mcv wrote: post #274
phpisthebest wrote: post #238

Earlier quoted context omitted.

well now we will get in a Hobbes vs Locke, I am more Lockean I disagree, and history has shown that free markets absent government control doe not instantly become monopolized, and infact through out most of history monopolize form when the government regulates the most Look at todays market as an example, the most competition is present in markets where the government has the least influence, where markets like ener…

Markets do not instantly become monopolized, but they do tend that way, and will also eagerly form cartels unless stopped by regulation. Of course it matters what kind of regulation; it's also possible to regulate markets in a way that protects monopolies, and some governments do that. So it's important to have a government that understands the importance of a free market. To give you some examples, the Dutch markets…

> Markets do not instantly become monopolized, but they do tend that way, and will also eagerly form cartels unless stopped by regulation.

Monopolization requires control of land or resources. This is because any cartel's attempt to set artificially high prices can be undercut by new entrants to the market who aren't in the cartel.

> On the other hand, the market for software is not very regulated, it's heavily monopolised.

Software is monopolized primarily through regulated monopolies on software (re)production i.e. copyright.

Re: Billions stolen in wage theft from US workers

#370

Post by remram »

crazygringo wrote: post #182
dbingham wrote: post #26

One of the clearest illustrations of the deeply injust structural power imbalance at the heart of our economic system is wage theft. If your employer withholds $20 from your paycheck it's a civil violation of contract law. You have to go through an extremely onerous and convoluted process that very likely won't go anywhere. If, in response, you decide to pay yourself by taking $20 from the till, that's criminal theft…

To be fair, it also works the other way -- If you withhold $20 from a bill payment, the worst that happens is collections. The company has to go through an extremely onerous and convoluted process that very likely won't go anywhere. If, in response, a company employee decides to settle the bill themselves by visiting your home and stealing $20 from your wallet, that's criminal theft. They will be arrested by the poli…

> the worst that happens is collections

> (...) by visiting your home and stealing $20 from your wallet

You are being dishonest here.

Here's my version:

If you withhold $20 from a bill payment, the worst that can happen is having to pay an extra fee, getting a utility shut off, and a permanent hit to your credit score.

If you charge a customer an extra "service improvement fee" or "credit card surcharge" or a $400 "Mod Seq Other Qhp" (an actual line from a bill I have in front of me), they'll have to pay it.

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