This is the second in a series of blogs here at stoptheftclass.com looking at the issue of wage theft. Wage theft is the illegal withholding of wages or the denial of benefits that are rightfully owed to an employee.

We are addressing the potentially rampant issue of wage theft through the microcosm of Washington state. This will be an especially important issue as the minimum wage in Seattle rises to $15 per hour. Passing a $15-an-hour minimum wage was historic. But if it is not enforced, what good is it? As reported in www.seattleweekly.com.

Comprehensive statistics are lacking on the extent of wage violations in Seattle today, but dozens of studies and investigations by federal and state agencies have uncovered widespread violations nationwide.

Wage Theft Rampant

A 2009 report by the National Employment Law Project surveying thousands of low-wage workers in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles found that nearly seven in 10 workers had experienced at least one pay-related violation in the previous work week, and that more than one-quarter of respondents had been paid less than minimum wage. Three-quarters of those who had worked more than 40 hours had not been paid the required time-and-a-half rate.

In addition to failure to pay minimum wage and overtime, common violations include requiring employees to work off the clock, denying meal breaks, illegal deductions, misclassifying workers as independent contractors, and not paying for all hours worked.

Have you been a victim of wage theft? Is it a moral issue? Is it something that a stop theft class for the employer might remedy? What are your thoughts?