Wage theft happens in many different ways. It is important for both employers and employees to be aware of it. Employees may not be getting paid as much as they should, and this could sometimes come from accidental oversight that employers can take steps to rectify.
To help shed some light on how this happens, let’s take a look at three of the most common examples of wage theft listed below.
Failing to pay necessary compensation
Employees must always be paid at least minimum wage, but it is also wise to consider other types of compensation. If an employee is supposed to have earned a bonus or a commission, for instance, it is wage theft if they are never paid. If they work overtime hours, they need to be paid at a higher rate due to overtime laws, rather than being paid their standard compensation.
Denying breaks or certain types of leave
Wage theft can also include forcing employees to work at times when they deserve breaks, such as required meal or rest breaks under state law. It can also be an issue if they are denied certain types of leave, such as saying that an employee cannot take sick leave that they have earned or not paying them properly while using their vacation time.
Taking tips from tipped employees
Finally, for tipped employees, a common form of wage theft is when a business owner or manager takes those tips. Even if the employees are in a tip pool, where they share tips amongst themselves, managers, supervisors and business owners should not be included in that pool.
When wage theft issues occur, things can get very complicated and sometimes contentious. It is important for both sides to understand their legal rights and the options at their disposal.