Immigrants Navigate The Painstaking Process Of Getting Back Unpaid Wages

Immigrants face wage theft at almost twice the rate of citizens, though it’s a problem that affects all kinds of workers. The Economic Policy Institute estimates employers fail to pay their workers some $50 billion each year.

By Elizabeth TrovallJune 5, 2019 12:07 pm, ,

From Houston Public Media:

Employers owe American workers billions of dollars in unpaid wages each year, as much as $50 billion in 2016, according to estimates from the progressive Economic Policy Institute.

Despite the prevalence of wage theft, workers face an uphill battle when they go up against employers.

Even when workers can prove they haven’t been paid for their work, getting their money back is a painstaking and often unsuccessful process.

In late 2017, Maria Soto, a legal resident living in Houston, didn’t receive adequate payment after working at a taco truck. And she’s still pursuing actions to get her money.

Soto went to the community advocacy group Faith and Justice Worker Center for help.

Last summer, advocates with the worker center started a dialogue with the taco truck owner, who refused to pay Soto.

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