Protecting Low-Wage Workers From Exploitation: A Mapping Study of Wage Theft Laws in the 40 Largest US Cities.

Objectives. We measured key features of local and state wage theft laws in the 40 largest US cities to assess the added value of local legislation and to create scientific legal data for use in evaluating the health impact of wage theft laws. Methods. We adapted standard policy surveillance methods...

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Publicado en:American Journal of Public Health Vol. 116; no. 4; pp. 492 - 502
Autores principales: Lee, Jennifer J., O'Connor, Maggie, Shen, Jiahui
Formato: Artículo
Publicado: American Public Health Association Apr2026
Materias:
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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      dt: Apr2026
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      pub: American Public Health Association
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        atl: Protecting Low-Wage Workers From Exploitation: A Mapping Study of Wage Theft Laws in the 40 Largest US Cities.
      aug:
        au:
          Lee, Jennifer J.
          O'Connor, Maggie
          Shen, Jiahui
        affil:
          Sheller Center for Social Justice and the Center for Public Health Law Research at the Temple University Beasley School of Law, Philadelphia, PA.
          Center for Public Health Law Research at the Temple University Beasley School of Law.
      su:
        United States
        Government policy
        Theft
        Social determinants of health
        Labor laws
        Public health
        Industrial hygiene
        Wage laws
        Descriptive statistics
        Longitudinal method
        Medical coding
      sug:
        subj:
          Government policy
          Theft
          Social determinants of health
          Labor laws
          Public health
          Industrial hygiene
          United States
          Regulation, Licensing, and Inspection of Miscellaneous Commercial Sectors
          Health and Welfare Funds
          Wage laws
          Descriptive statistics
          Longitudinal method
          Medical coding
      ab: Objectives. We measured key features of local and state wage theft laws in the 40 largest US cities to assess the added value of local legislation and to create scientific legal data for use in evaluating the health impact of wage theft laws. Methods. We adapted standard policy surveillance methods to collect and code local and state minimum wage and nonpayment of wages theft laws from January 1, 2010, to April 15, 2023. Results. Compared with state laws, local wage theft legislation was proportionally more likely to contain features that facilitated worker complaints and to provide flexible enforcement tools. Only 4 of the 40 largest cities were totally preempted from enacting local wage theft legislation. Conclusions. Local wage theft laws provide an opportunity for innovative mechanisms to support complaint filing and enforcement. More cities could enact wage theft laws without preemption concerns. Public Health Implications. Ensuring that low-wage workers are fairly paid is important to health and health equity. Our research provides scientific legal data for use in evaluating the health effects of these widely applied protections.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
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