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41 Comments
- novenator, on 04/07/2009, -6/+24This is what happens when regulatory agencies have their funding cut to the bones, enforcement becomes slack or non-existent. This is something I experienced personally, a group of former coworkers and I got ripped off by a former company, who had skirted federally mandated prevailing wage laws for years. Someone reported them to the Dept of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, and even though it was an open and close case, still took 18 months to resolve. In the end, we are each still owed $1200 by the company, but that is money we will never see.
The moral of the story: companies routinely violate the laws that are in place to protect American workers, and routinely get away with it. We need stronger enforcement, tighter regulation, and a good counterweight like the Employee Free Choice Act that will help workers pool their efforts against exploitation. - ALiberalMind, on 04/08/2009, -1/+13As someone who's in college for the IT field, I often wonder what will happen to me and my fellow IT peers down the road. Will companies provide some of the coverage of costs for extra training on updated technologies? How about coverage for certain health issues such as carpel tunnel and stress related effects for constantly working overtime? It's important that we don't forget what union leaders did over 100 years ago in order to ensure that everybody is treated fairly in the work environment and while legislation like the EFCA isn't perfect, it's a step in the right direction. Otherwise, companies will seek to skirt laws against workers just for the sake of maximum profit.
- lordmike, on 04/08/2009, -1/+12Well, it's no surprise.. it's not like the Bush administration gave a damn about workers... I hope this will change soon... we have a good secretary of labor now...
- ForumDriv, on 04/08/2009, -1/+7It is always interesting, but not surprising, that Members of Congress (mostly, but not exclusively Republicans) who want to suspend immigration reform until we have deported or otherwise driven out 12,000,000 immigrants who are here illegally, are also the most hostile to enforcing existing labor laws or giving teeth to the labor department. With that many people not effectively covered by labor, OSHA, minimum wage, and other key laws and with next to zero labor law enforcement, it is a pretty sweet deal for employers. In fact, under Bush, immigration raids were apparently part of a union-busting strategy.
However, if we got many or most of those 12,000,000 people into the system and covered by the law we could enforce labor and immigration law more effectively than we can now and make it harder for employers to cheat immigrants or anyone else. Hilda Solis, the daughter of immigrants, has a deep understanding of how reforming immigration will be benefitial to US workers and the US economy (despite the fact free assault by opponents). Her appointment and the thrust of the Obama Admin's policy is (so far) very good for American working people. - seltaeb4, on 04/08/2009, -2/+8Yep, it's never long before the "free marketers" show up.
I'd like to tell you guys a little story about how all businesses are wonderful and fair and would never do *anything* that might harm others, even if it meant making a quick buck. But first, I'd like each of you to eat a gallon of this confiscated peanut butter I have over here... - ObamaYouth, on 04/08/2009, -1/+7Hilda L. Solis +1 for caring about employment legalities.
- yerdaddy, on 04/08/2009, -3/+9Get back to us when your teenagers are working in a meat plant during school hours. See how much you think of the price of beef.
- scschwa, on 04/08/2009, -1/+7Since this happens to be an area of expertise for me, I'll put in my two cents.
These Agencies (the OFCCP & EEOC) are underpaid and understaffed with properly educated individuals. Both of these issues could be solved by increased funding. However, both are also receiving fresh, sharp teeth with the Ledbetter Act that was already passed and the Paycheck Fairness Act which is expected to shortly (it's stuck in a Senate committee right now, but has already passed in the House). This administration is working to improve these agencies; the last, suffice to say, made my job of defending large corporations in Wage & Hour cases rather easy.
I'll put it this way: when the defense comes at you with multi-staged, multivariate regressions and 3,000 pages of report and backup, the simple summary statistics of means and standard deviations that the government relies on don't hold up very long. - scschwa, on 04/08/2009, -0/+5Well, when companies pay a certain class less than another type of individual of the same or worse performance, this breaks laws. Like amendments to the Bill of Rights-laws. I would say you have the right to 'bother' the government in these situations.
- inactive, on 04/08/2009, -0/+4This is why I have been waiting for months to file with the DOL over an FMLA violation my employer committed against me. I am hoping the new SoL will start straightening things out. As the article says, the WHD hasn't done jack ***** for anyone in years, and frequently tells people making complaints to get another job if they don't like it. I am sure this gives the economic anarchy, er, i mean free market people a rock hard erection... but it won;t last long.
- haydesigner, on 04/08/2009, -2/+5jsuther publicly showing his willful ignorance. The horror!
- GaltShrugged, on 04/08/2009, -1/+3I worked as a kid. It was nice having more money than my friends and being able to buy the newest video games. I wasn't a victim. The big bad "evil" corporations weren't taking advantage of me. I wanted to make some money. I was cutting grass all the time to make money. I worked at businesses processing credit card payments while my friends were riding their bikes.
Was I exploited? I don't think I was. I didn't feel bad about getting $200 under the table every week for my work. I didn't feel abused about getting paid $40 to cut someone's grass. - seltaeb4, on 04/08/2009, -2/+4You do that, jjamminjon.
The rest of us prefer not to have meat with ***** all over it. - cherejimonica, on 04/08/2009, -0/+2dugg
- normlsparky, on 04/08/2009, -0/+2"This is why more government in this instance just leads to failure..."
Riiiiiiiight. That's exactly why: (FTA) Jonathan T. Meyer, assistant director of Forensic Audits and Special Investigations, for GAO, said, "This investigation clearly shows that the Department of Labor has left thousands of actual victims of wage theft who sought federal government assistance with nowhere to turn. Our work has shown that when WHD adequately investigates and follows through on cases, they are often successful." - novenator, on 04/08/2009, -0/+2Evans, if that was supposed to be a reply to my thread (and I'm assuming it is), it happened back in the winter of 05. The case worker was swamped and it took until 07 for the first part to be resolved. Everyone was just too tired and frustrated to pursue part 2, so the swindling corporation won that round.
- novenator, on 04/08/2009, -1/+3I think the cops have better things to do than sort out labor disputes
- novenator, on 04/08/2009, -0/+2Solis can really do some good. I think she's awesome.
- EvansHall, on 04/11/2009, -0/+1Well, the $8b they've received in increases didn't get the job done. So I guess some figure over $8b is needed.
Let's say your situation happened one million times a year, that is, to one million hard working Americans. That's a loss of $1.2b. Let's say that you're situation was one of the "better" ones and the average loss was five times higher. That's a loss of $6b.
Doesn't add up to me. - stonebear, on 04/08/2009, -0/+1Is it the jalapeno flavored?
- normlsparky, on 04/08/2009, -1/+2Mmmmm. I'd like to wash that confiscated peanut butter down with some yummy, chemically tainted powdered milk from China.
- lightningbolt, on 04/08/2009, -0/+1Welcome to America, land of the government that hates its workers.
- jjamminjon, on 04/08/2009, -0/+1I clearly stated "in this instance" before making further claims which preempts both of you guys and makes the points null/void. Besides part of my statement was that you can do all the regulatory checks you wants, doesn't always lead to the intended result.
To be more specific on norm's point, look at this, we have police, then department of labor to cover what they can't then WHD to oversee and make sure DOL is doing their job. - RonPauls, on 04/08/2009, -1/+2I sold stuff on ebay when I was like 11. I guess I was a child laborer.
- jsuther, on 04/08/2009, -1/+1commie
- jsuther, on 04/08/2009, -1/+1commie
- mobling, on 04/08/2009, -1/+1No, actually this is what happens when a department of our government gets accustomed to sitting on their asses and drawing excellent wages. The only goal the departments have is how to be manipulate their jobs for maximize their retirement benefits. Not this department. Every damn one of them.
- normlsparky, on 04/08/2009, -1/+1Under George W. Bush and Elaine Chao the Department of Labor exceeded the standard by which failure is measured. Hopefully Solis can rectify that problem.
- EvansHall, on 04/08/2009, -1/+1What budget cuts are you talking about? The Department of Labor's budget rose +$3.7b from FY2007 to FY2008 and +$4.0b from FY2008 to FY2009. Source: http://www.dol.gov/_sec/budget2009/bib.htm and http://www.dol.gov/_sec/Budget2008/overview-toc.ht ...
I'm sorry to hear about your story, but I don't know if lack of funding is the problem. Are you suggesting that we need to increase the DOL's budget by MORE than $4b a year? Do they need $10b more every year? - gkiltz, on 04/08/2009, -0/+0Never a DUUUUUUUUH! Moment, EH?
- Stochio, on 04/08/2009, -2/+1Then you should hire all of those supposedly underpaid individuals and make an arbitrage profit.
- normlsparky, on 04/08/2009, -2/+1So you're advocating child labor in the name of free market *****? I completely disagree. There are already far too many dumb asses in this country.
- jsuther, on 04/08/2009, -5/+4As a ten year veteran of the IT industry, I implore you not reduce the future job opportunities and salaries for both you and me by encouraging unions. The IT industry and like wise the Internet has grown due to the lack of regulation and unions. IT workers currently enjoy high salaries compared to other professions in which unions are more common. Unions are not necessary for IT workers because almost every business today has some IT requirements. Jobs with limited numbers employeers like autoworkers or airline pilots may have a need for unions but IT workers do not. If you are worried about carpel tunnel and overtime choose a company that will accommodate your ergonomic needs and has a reputation for not overworking it employees. If you have a good work ethic, work from home and get your self a fancy ergonomic keyboard and Herman Miller chair. You get to write it off. Many of these regulations and union dues will only reduce your profit (salary) because someone has to pay for it.
- RonPauls, on 04/08/2009, -5/+3"Get back to us when your teenagers are working in a meat plant during school hours. "
Apparently it's not their school. They don't go to school.
"See how much you think of the price of beef."
I don't think about it much now, not much reason to. - dvsbastard, on 04/08/2009, -8/+2I read that as "Department of Failure"... Evidently it seems just as appropriate in this case...
- RonPauls, on 04/08/2009, -11/+4Or just end the dept. of labor because there is no need for it. Any fraud can be referred to the police.
- jjamminjon, on 04/08/2009, -9/+2@novenator and RonPauls
Main problem with a lot of these sorts of jobs is the lack of passionate individuals who will abide by their duties to the extent the law/contract has mandated them to when signing those employment papers.
Fact is a lot of people just want a paycheck and time to goof off. Often oversight is recommended which the Department of Labor seems to be a result of, but it really seems like there is no solid way to ensure certain jobs are done properly without over-bloating each department to the point where it is unsustainable fiscally.
People will never fully be vindicated of all things that have wronged them at the end of the day, so its best to seek improvement always as is the nature of capitalism. This is why more government in this instance just leads to failure, they spend with good intention to no avail whereas on a local scale many more individuals can band together testing many solutions without draining capital from the nation as a whole. Let alone its much easier to reform on a local level then on a national. - scamper22, on 04/08/2009, -8/+1the only protection I need is to be paid what I signed in the contract. I get paid every 2 weeks. If I don't see that cheque, then I quit.
Everything else is *****.
You want someone to take care of you, take care of yourself. If you're not willing to do that, then go bother the government. A business is money in exchange for labor period. - RonPauls, on 04/08/2009, -15/+4Department of labor only serves to greatly increase costs of everything relating to business.
Oh, and those "kids" who want to work for the meatpacking business - more power to them. It seems like a voluntary choice, so everyone's good. - jsuther, on 04/08/2009, -12/+2Someone voluntarily exchanging their labor for money. The horror!
- dnc34, on 04/08/2009, -12/+1Nobody cares about "great" britain
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