Governments Struggle To Enforce "living Wage" Laws

SEATTLE (AP) — States and cities whose lawmakers proudly passed "living wage" laws are finding it difficult to make sure employers actually pay their workers accordingly. Evidence of compliance is plain to see in the hours-worked total on most pay stubs, but state and federal laws don't require employers to routinely provide this crucial detail to the government. The new laws are meaningless without proactive enforcement, labor advocates say, citing research that shows roughly one in four businesses nationwide already cheat their workers out of minimum wages. Enforcement is expensive, but some state and local officials and advocates envision recovering the costs of investigations through higher fines, or anticipating more revenue as more people are paid their legal wages. A strip club called Pandora's Adult Cabaret became one of the first businesses in Seattle forced to pay thousands of dollars in back wages to employees under the new law. The enforcement of California's new minimum wage law, meanwhile, is provided for under an existing state law authorizing proactive investigations of industries with a history of breaking labor laws.

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