Gov. Cuomo: Take Action on Labor Law Enforcement!
Join us tomorrow to reveal data on weak labor law enforcement by the
NYS Department of Labor
Wednesday, 11/13, 11:30am
In front of NYS Dept. of Labor, 75 Varick St.
The Coalition recently filed a Freedom of Information request with the Department of Labor after they denied that there were 15,000 pending wage theft cases with a 2-year backlog. The information we received in response to that request was shocking, especially in light of a recent study by the National Law Employment Project which found that a billion dollars is stolen annually from workers just in NYC alone. A report by the Economic Policy Institute last week stated that more than 60 percent of low-wage workers have some pay illegally withheld by their employer each week.
Even when the DOL orders employers to pay money to their employees, because of weaknesses of the law and inadequate resources to actually enforce DOL orders and collect the money from employers who refuse to pay. Instead of allocating more resources, Cuomo’s administration announced a new policy to investigate complaints no more than 3 years back from the date they are filed except in egregious cases. The NY Labor Law has a six-year statute of limitations and the Commissioner of Labor is authorized to investigate claims for the full six years.
Join us at the press conference tomorrow as we reveal information that relates to the number of cases filed and pending; the disposition of cases; and the amount of stolen wages recovered. Workers will come together to speak out against this outrageously weak enforcement and to demand that Gov. Cuomo strengthen enforcement NOW.