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    September 2014

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    TABLE OF CONTENTS

    ABOUT THIS REPORT................................................................................................................. 2

    ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.............................................................................................................. 2

    EXECUTIVE SUMMARY............................................................................................................... 4

    Findings.................................................................................................................................. 4

    Recommendations.................................................................................................................. 4

    INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................... 5

    DEFINITIONS AND TRENDS........................................................................................................ 6

    METHODOLOGY......................................................................................................................... 7

    Survey Design......................................................................................................................... 7

    Formulation of Questions....................................................................................................... 7

    Defining the Survey Population.............................................................................................. 8

    Criteria for Study................................................................................................................ 8

    Sampling Methodology............................................................................................................ 9

    Limitations............................................................................................................................10

    RESULTS...................................................................................................................................10

    Respondent Characteristics...................................................................................................10

    Findings.................................................................................................................................12

    CONCLUSION............................................................................................................................16

    Significance...........................................................................................................................17

    Next Steps and Recommendations........................................................................................18

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    ABOUT THIS REPORT

    This report documents the challenges facing low-wage workers who live in Chicago's 10th Ward.

    Southeast Chicago's local economy heavily relied on the steel mills and other heavy industrial production

    for employment. Decrease of manufacturing jobs reduced the availability of jobs with living wages andcollective bargaining, the traditional protection against labor violations and wage theft. The rise of

    employment in service and retail industries brought rises of wage theft and other violations. Centro de

    Trabajadores Unidos: Immigrant Workers Project (CTU:IWP) sought to investigate economic realities

    facing often-overlooked workers. As local and national stakeholders discuss the minimum wage, that

    conversation is incomplete without recognizing that wage laws are continually broken and impact entire

    communities.

    ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

    Thank you to the team of grassroots surveyors that engaged local workers despite the intimidation andconnected with workers. Thank you to workers who had the courage to speak up about daily struggles in

    the journey for a better future for themselves and their family.

    Critical academic advice was provided by:

    Nik Theodore, Ph.D - Professor, Department of Urban Planning and Policy

    University of Illinois-Chicago

    Co-Authors:

    Arturo Carrillo, Ph.D. Candidate - Jane Addams College of Social Work, University of Illinois-Chicago

    Eric Tllez, Lead Organizer - Centro de Trabajadores Unidos: Immigrant Workers Project

    Funding for this report provided by:

    Chicago Community Trust

    Dominican Sisters Fund

    Unitarian Universalist Fund

    for a Just Society

    Woods Fund Chicago

    Many thanks to additional foundations that generously support our ongoing work:

    Abelard Foundation

    Ben & Jerry's Foundation

    Claretian Social Development

    Fund

    Claretian Missionaries

    Crossroads Fund

    Field Foundation

    Hispanics in Philanthropy

    Just Pay For All

    Latino Giving Circle

    Latino Policy Forum

    Nuestro Futuro

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    ABOUT CENTRO DE TRABAJADORES UNIDOS: IMMIGRANT WORKERS PROJECT

    In 2008, after experiencing labor abuses at a local factory and organizing in their defense, a

    group of immigrant workers were determined to create a stable resource on Chicagos

    underserved southeast side. That resource would ensure low-wage immigrant workers would

    have the tools, information, and support to understand and defend their rights. The founders'vision was to support a continual stream of workers to develop their own leadership potential in

    order to advocate for themselves, mobilize their community, and take action against injustices

    they experienced in the workplace. Out of that impulse, they established Centro de

    Trabajadores Unidos: Immigrant Workers Project (CTU:IWP), the first worker center in the

    southeast side of Chicago. The establishment of the organization filled a void to support

    workers of both the southeast side of Chicago and the adjacent southern suburbs.

    The unjust culture of exploitation in low-wage industries contributes to continued widespreadlabor violations against a vulnerable population, immigrant workers. In 2012, a pilot study

    conducted by CTU:IWP of workers employed in the southeast side of Chicago found that 20.2%

    of workers reported earning less than the minimum wage, 64.3% did not receive overtime pay

    and 68.8% reported off-the-clock violations. Therefore, CTU:IWPs primary focal points have

    been to bring about economic justice and improve the interrelated immigration issues greatly

    impacting our community. In addition to addressing the abuses workers face locally, we strive to

    understand and change the unjust policies out of which our local problems arise. CTU:IWP

    advocates for systemic change by working with legislators and government agencies to improvelabor and immigration laws. CTU:IWP's six years of experience fighting for workers' rights built

    up anecdotal evidence that wage theft was concentrated in particular industries. Retail, service,

    restaurants, and warehouse work were all major sources of work violations, including wage

    theft.

    CTU:IWP is a worker center dedicated to organizing and supporting marginalized communities

    to interrupt cycles of poverty and injustice in the workplace. The mission of CTU:IWP is to have

    a powerful immigrant run organization on the Southeast side of Chicago that will educateworkers on their rights, develop leadership within the immigrant community, and organize all

    workers as they fight for their rights in the workplace. We fight to change policy that increases

    standards for immigrant workers.

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    EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

    The purpose of this report was to expose working conditions for low-wage workers in the

    southeast side of Chicago, a community far removed from the economic center of the city which

    deals with high levels of unemployment decades after the exit of the once opportunity-rich steel

    and manufacturing industries.

    In 2013, Centro de Trabajadores Unidos: Immigrant Workers Project (CTU:IWP) began to

    conduct a formal assessment of the working conditions for low-wage workers of the area with

    the assistance of Nik Theodore, researcher at University of Illinois at Chicago: College of Urban

    Planning and Public Affairs. A total of 182 surveys were collected within the 10th ward of

    Chicago. Our goal was to assess the prevalence of wage theft and perceived threat of

    retaliation by front-line low-wage workers who were not managers, professionals, technicians, or

    self-employed.

    Findings

    38% or roughly 2 out of 5 low-income workers experienced wage theft.

    Wage theft rates were highest in Service (65%), Childcare (57%), Retail (44%),

    Restaurants (33%), and Grocery stores(29%).

    Women are more likely to experience wage theft than men, 43% to 31% respectively.

    Wage theft occurred highest among those paid in cash (58%). However, those paid by

    company check were not immune; 31% reported at least one form of wage theft.

    76% of workers believe the employer would take negative action against the worker or

    not do anything to solve the original problem.

    Recommendations

    Conduct workshops to educate community residents about their rights as workers and

    distribute easy-to-understand materials for workers to assess whether or not they are the

    victim of wage theft.

    Conduct labor rights and responsibilities workshops for local employers and distribute

    materials for businesses to know current labor law and how to operate business

    responsibly.

    Investigate problematic businesses who habitually steal wages and violate their workers

    rights to conduct enforcement to promote industry-wide improvements.

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    INTRODUCTION

    Six years after the official end of the economic collapse, the recovery continues at a slow pace.

    Lack of consumer confidence and lack of strong spending factor into this moderate recovery.

    Another phenomenon is the record level of income inequality. A February 2014 national study

    found the share of income captured by the top 1% climbed from 9.9% in 1979 to 23.5% in 2007,

    a level not seen since years preceding the Great Depression.1

    While the top 1% capture record levels of growing income, some low-income families' wages

    are stolen and amplify this divide. Wage theft is responsible for $7.3 million being stolen every

    week from workers in Cook County. On average, Chicagoland low-income workers lose 16% of

    their paycheck to wage theft, or $2,595 out of an annual salary of $16,7532. If a worker has a

    family of three, that family would be below the Federal Poverty Guideline of $19,790. Earning

    below the poverty line and losing wages to theft means that family is lacking $5,632 to pay for

    basic needs like groceries, utilities, and housing. Wage theft puts already struggling families in a

    worse situation and stifles local economic activity.

    Chicagos southeast side shares a similar story of economic crash and limping recovery.

    Beginning in the early 1900s and up until its peak in 1970s, the U.S. Steel South Works

    employed 20,000 workers, but at the time of its closure in 1992 only 700 workers were left.3

    From 2002 to 2011, 932 jobs were added to make 9,407 total jobs in the area.4However, since

    2000 the number of unemployed people in zip codes overlapping the 10th Ward increased by

    19.01%, to roughly 6,924 people looking for jobs5. Economic opportunities are not enough to

    meet the demands of the community. High local unemployment depresses overall economic

    activity and keeps the local economy stagnant.

    1Sommeiller, E. and Price, M. (2014). The Increasingly Unequal States of America. [online] Economic

    Policy Institute. http://www.epi.org/files/2014/Income-Inequality-by-State-Final.pdf [Accessed Aug 8,2014].

    2Theodore, N., Auer, M., Hollon, R. and Morales-Mirque, S. (2010). Unregulated Work In Chicago.[online] Center for Urban Economic Development.http://www.urbaneconomy.org/sites/default/files/Unregulated%20Work%20in%20Chicago%204_7_2010%20FINAL%20REPORT_0.pdf[Accessed May 13, 2014].3Sellers, R. (n.d.). South Chicago : U.S. Steel. [online] Orion.neiu.edu.

    http://orion.neiu.edu/~reseller/scussteel.html[Accessed Aug 7, 2014].4Onthemap.ces.census.gov, (2014). OnTheMap. [online] http://onthemap.ces.census.gov/[Accessed

    Aug 6, 2014].5American FactFinder. (2014) [online] Factfinder2.census.gov.

    http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/index.xhtml [Accessed Sep.10, 2014].

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    DEFINITIONS AND TRENDS

    Violations of wage laws are commonly referred to as wage theft. It occurs through the various

    following forms: failure to pay minimum wage (i.e., paid less than $8.25 per hour in Illinois for

    non-tipped workers), failure to pay overtime (i.e., paid less than 1.5 times the regular rate of pay

    for all hours over 40 per week), off-the-clock violations (i.e., work not compensated before or

    after regular shift), meal break violations (i.e., work during break without compensation), or other

    illegal deductions taken from workers' pay.

    One popular example is when a worker is paid cash and not reported on the businesses'

    payroll. Often referred to as under the table. Employees will work for 40 hours or more for a

    rate that is less than the established state or federal minimum wage rate. This is often done by

    employers to avoid paying overtime rates or hiding minimum wage violations, as well as not

    paying all tax obligations.

    The issue has drawn significant attention due to its pervasiveness and disproportional impact on

    low-wage workers. A study released in 2010 identified the industries in the Chicagoland area

    with the highest rates of wage theft as measured solely by minimum wage violations included

    private households (61.3%), personal and repair services (60.1%), retail and drug stores (32%),

    grocery stores (25.9%), home health care (22.5%), restaurants and hotels (22.3%), residential

    construction (21.2%), manufacturing, transportation and warehousing (21.1%), and security,

    building and ground service (19.7%). There also appears to be a marked difference in minimum

    wage violations by demographics; foreign-born Latinos had an especially high minimum wage

    violation rate of 32 percent, nearly triple the rate of U.S.-born Latinos and more than 24 times

    the rate of U.S.-born whites. Race plays an important role among U.S.-born respondents, where

    African-American workers had a violation rate 27 times that of white workers (and triple that of

    U.S.-born Latino workers).6

    The law protects workers from employer retaliation if they complain to their employer or to a

    government agency about their working conditions; retaliation against workers who attempt to

    organize a union is also illegal. Threatening to fire a worker, actually firing or suspending

    workers, cutting hours or pay, harassing or abusing workers, or giving workers a worse work

    6Theodore, N., Auer, M., Hollon, R. and Morales-Mirque, S. (2010). Unregulated Work In Chicago.

    [online] Center for Urban Economic Development.http://www.urbaneconomy.org/sites/default/files/Unregulated%20Work%20in%20Chicago%204_7_2010%20FINAL%20REPORT_0.pdf[Accessed May 13, 2014].

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    assignment all are illegal forms of employer retaliation if they occur as a direct result of a

    complaint or union organizing effort. The explicit or perceived threat of employer retaliation

    coupled with the limited job market can be a serious obstacle for workers to address injustices

    in the workplace.

    METHODOLOGY

    Survey Design

    The survey was designed with the support of researcher Nik Theodore of the University of

    Illinois at Chicago: College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs. The 20-item survey was

    designed to collect information on the rate of pay, method of payment, workplace conditions,

    available benefits, perceived threat of retaliation by the employer, employment by staffing

    agency, union membership, race, sex, and nation of origin. Given the plan to collect surveys in

    public with respondents willing to respond without incentives, the survey was designed to be

    easy to understand, simple to administer, and comprehensive. Most of the questions were

    designed to be answered with a simple yes or no response. Multiple choice questions included

    an option for an other response in order to capture other possibilities beyond the defined

    answers. Surveys were designed to be conducted in 5 to 7 minutes.

    Formulation of Questions

    The first two questions were designed to screen out respondents that do not fit the criteria of

    being employed in the 10th Ward. Capturing the industry in which the respondent was employed

    was done by listing the categories that were expected within the 10th Ward; it was also clear

    that the list was not comprehensive enough and therefore the option for other was left as a fill-

    in. Respondents were asked to fill-in the type of work conducted. This question served to screen

    out managers, professionals, technical workers, or the self-employed.

    In order to measure overtime violations a two-part question was included asking respondents if:

    1) they worked more than 40 hours for this employer during your last work week? and 2) If

    yes, were you paid time and a half for all of the hours you worked over 40?. The questions

    were designed to not depend on the respondent to understand the requirement of overtime pay

    in the state of Illinois. Similarly in order to capture minimum wage violations the question asked,

    Last week, including any tips you earned, did you get paid less than $8.25 per hour?

    Measuring off-the-clock violations were done by asking, Last week, did you work without pay

    before your official shift started or after your official shift ended?

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    Measuring perceived threat of retaliation by employer was done by the following multiple choice

    question, What do you think your employer would do if you want to complain about your pay,

    hours and/or work conditions? (Check all that apply) The options were: 1) I would get fired 2)

    My hours would get cut 3) My wages would get reduced 4) Nothing will happen 5) My boss

    would fix the problem 6) Other (fill in).

    Defining the Survey Population

    Criteria for Study

    Participants had to meet the following criteria:

    Have been employed during the previous work week

    Be employed within the City of Chicagos 10th Ward

    Be a front-line worker (Not a manager, self-employed, professional, or technical

    worker)

    Working in a low-wage industry as their primary job

    Excluded within this criteria were professional workers in education, health,

    social services, religious institutions, insurance and financial services; however,

    low-income workers within these industries remained part of the survey

    Defining the Occupation Categories:

    Child care: Those employed for daycare businesses, those operated out of a business or

    home business. This category includes workers such as drivers and others employed by

    child care businesses.

    Construction: Laborers, trade workers, or anyone defining their work as being as a part

    of the construction sector.

    Factory: Production of goods, including food processing for commercial sale.

    Grocery Stores: A sub-segment of retail which sells a variety of produce and food

    products for off-site consumption. Community concentration of this industry merited

    distinct categorization.

    Restaurant: Cooks, busboys, waitresses and other jobs related to restaurants, both dine

    in and carry out.

    Retail: Businesses selling commercial goods, including pre-packaged food not meant to

    be consumed at the point of sale.

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    Services: Includes home/professional cleaning services, laundry/dry cleaning services,

    car wash, auto shop workers, landscaping, and entertainment.

    Warehouse and Trucking: Laborer, drivers, operators and delivery.

    Sampling Methodology

    The worker population of interest is considered a hard-to-reach population due to their

    vulnerable employment position, including oftentimes lack of immigration status. They may be

    reluctant to participate in a survey on workplace conditions due to fear of retaliation by the

    employer. In order to obtain such sensitive information, safety was prioritized and trust

    established with the respondents.

    In order to achieve trust, all surveyors, except the organization staff, were local community

    residents. This decision helped improve the possibility of contacting hard-to-reach workers by

    utilizing existing social networks. As most surveyors were local community residents, there were

    opportunities for surveyors to run into local workers in everyday casual settings. Surveyors were

    encouraged to open conversations with workers outside of the workplace, without immediately

    asking questions from the survey. Some conversations would begin with the service offerings of

    CTU-IWP. Other conversations would start with general conversations about neighborhood

    current events. Teams of surveyors would go out together to social areas in the community

    where workers were comfortable and relaxed. Another method to reach workers was to ask

    workers to refer family members or social acquaintances to also complete a survey. This was

    most successful when surveys were gathered in large social gatherings, like children sports

    leagues and community festivals, where just-surveyed workers could immediately point out

    other workers.

    Once the person was identified as a worker and interested in completing a survey, the surveyor

    was equipped with a map of the 10th ward to confirm their work place location was within the

    ward. No financial incentives were given to participants. Surveyors were instructed to assist in

    filling out the surveys with the respondents in order to address illiteracy or any possible

    confusion with questions. Even where respondent wanted to independently fill out the survey,

    surveyors were instructed to review all information to guarantee legible writing, clear indication

    of response, and completion of all survey questions.

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    Limitations

    Limitations existed within the sampling of low-wage workers in the 10th Ward specifically

    workers who were employed in the 10th Ward but resided outside the community since the

    outreach focused exclusively within the 10th Ward. Resources were not available to conduct

    surveys outsides the community. Certain sectors of the low-wage workforce were under-

    represented in our sample such as construction workers and landscapers, due to the fact that

    they typically work outside the 10th Ward. Identifying low-wage workers employed in

    businesses that do not directly interact with the general population were not as easy to access

    as those in businesses serving the general population, such as restaurants and grocery stores.

    As such, factory and childcare workers were harder to access for the survey. Other reasons for

    lack of participation in the survey included: general skepticism, distrust of where the surveys

    would end up, fear of retaliation, or publicly acknowledging off-the-books employment.

    Given that the survey was designed to be administered in a brief manner, this research project

    did not include open-ended in-depth questions or interviews that could identify a wide variety of

    workplace violations or a financial measure of the wage theft. As a result, the data collected

    was limited to the responses given on the survey and we could therefore not extrapolate the

    amount of wage theft occurring in the community.

    RESULTS

    Respondent Characteristics

    Through extensive outreach of the community we were able to collect 182 surveys of workers

    employed within the 10th ward of Chicago beginning in April 2013 and ending August 2014.

    After screening the responses to ensure they met the criteria, 70 surveys were excluded.

    Leaving our total sample for this survey at 112 respondents. The sample was made up of 61

    men (57%) and 46 women (43%). Respondents were predominantly Latino (93.7%, n=104),

    foreign-born (71%, n=76), not temporary workers (88.9%, n=98), and non-union employees

    (95.3%, n=102). Given the lack of diversity in the sample, with the exception of sex,

    comparisons between groups were not able to be conducted.

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    Count o

    The industries selected for this s

    Criteria for Study). Respondent

    study. The highest percentage

    (15.1%, n= 17), Retail (14.2%, n

    Warehouse and Trucking (8%, n

    Given the variance of the numb

    equally representative of the wo

    Count of Businesses

    f Respondents According to Gender

    tudy meant to capture the low-wage industries

    were spread throughout the various industries

    orked in Restaurants (26.7%, n=30) followed

    =16), Factories (13.3%, n=15), Grocery stores

    =9), Childcare (6.3%, n=7), and Construction (

    r of surveys collected for each industry, the fin

    king conditions of their respective industry.

    Included in Survey According to Busines

    11

    of the area (see

    selected for the

    y Services

    12.5%, n=14),

    .6%, n=4).

    ings are not

    s Type

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    The rates of wage theft, as mea

    violations, and off-the-clock viol

    industries were at 21% (n=23).

    12% (n=11) of those that respon

    viewing the aggregate of wage t

    at least one form of wage theft,

    previous work week. A higher p

    study than men (31%, n=19).

    Percentage of

    Findings

    ured by this study include minimum wage viol

    tions. The overall rate of minimum wage violati

    Overtime violations totaled 18% (n=20) of the s

    ded to the question reported off-the-clock viola

    eft violations, by the total respondents reportin

    8.4% (n=43) of our sample experienced wage

    ercentage of women (46%, n=21) experienced

    Wage Theft Among All Workers in Surve

    12

    tions, overtime

    on across

    ample. While

    ions. When

    g experiencing

    theft in the

    wage theft in our

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    a. Minimum Wage Violations

    The rates of violations varied wi

    were employers in the Service (

    b. Overtime Violations

    The highest rates of overtime vi

    grocery (21%) sectors.

    ely in the study. Among the highest violators

    3%), Childcare (43%) and Retail sectors (31%

    lations were in the service (53%), construction

    13

    f minimum wage

    ).

    (25%), and

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    c. Off-the-clock Violations

    Off-the-clock violations were se

    (13%), and factory (13%) sector

    d. Combined

    Overall, the rates of wage theft

    Restaurant (33%), and Grocery

    n in similar rates in childcare (14%), restaurant

    .

    ere highest in Service (65%), Childcare (57%),

    stores (29%).

    14

    s (13%), retail

    Retail (44%),

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    The rates of perceived retaliatio

    separately. Yet when viewed in t

    complained to their employer, 3

    be fixed.

    Analysis according to industry s

    Stores and Restaurants, take a

    from wage theft overwhelmingly

    them or be met with indifference

    varied among respondents when viewing the

    otal, 43% of respondents feared some form of

    % felt nothing would happen, while 23% felt th

    owed that Retail and Service workers, specific

    ajor risk in reporting an abuse. Workers most

    know that reporting any labor violation will mos

    .

    15

    esponses

    etaliation if they

    problem would

    ally in Grocery

    likely to suffer

    t likely harm

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    The findings also indicate that wage theft is occurring at a higher rate among those being paid in

    cash (58%). However those being paid by company check are not immune with 31% reporting

    at least one form of wage theft.

    CONCLUSION

    In the 10th ward, 38% of low-income workers experienced wage theft. Considering that wages

    should be fully paid to those who earned them, this number is staggering. 10th ward workers

    who were paid with cash experienced the highest levels of wage theft, 58%. Documentation

    serves as a protection against wage theft. As workers turn to informal arrangements without

    written conditions, it becomes more difficult to enforce those agreements.

    Data from our survey shows the top four industries rife with wage theft are: Services (65%),

    Childcare (57%), Retail (44%), and Restaurants (33%). These jobs are accessible to most

    people within the community and do not have collective bargaining. This reduces the leverage

    of workers to negotiate and protect their rights.

    Women are more likely to experience wage theft than men, 43% to 31% respectively. Industries

    where women make up most workers merit investigation since gender discrimination against

    women still exists in the workplace.

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    Workers who challenge wage theft and other labor rights violations face retaliation. 43% of

    respondents reported they would experience retaliation if they spoke out. Further still, 76% of

    workers believed that their employer would take negative action against the worker or not do

    anything to solve the original problem. Industries with the highest amounts of wage theft, Retail

    and Service, are the industries where workers most believe they cannot address wage theft or

    other labor violations. The most likely outcome of workers taking action still leaves the injustice

    uncorrected and could cost the worker their source of income. Combined with local

    unemployment rising 19% from over the last 12 years, the economic environment discourages

    workers from standing up for their rights.

    Significance

    Survey gathering across industries was varied and provided insight into local working conditions

    more so for some industry than others. In restaurants and services, a robust amount of surveys

    reflected the reality of workers and showed significant levels of wage theft. For construction and

    child care, the small sample of surveys showed lower amounts of wage theft even though

    anecdotal third-person reports indicated these industries also experience wage theft regularly.

    Overall, the survey process exposed the organization to more cases of labor violations than

    previously known in the 10th ward and helped to identify particularly problematic industries that

    need education and outreach about Illinois labor and wage laws.

    All community residents have a stake in wage theft. Local workers are also local consumers.

    When part of a workers paycheck is stolen, that money to meet basic needs does not circulate

    in the local economy. Low-road businesses are rewarded and given an illegal advantage

    against its competitors who play by the rules and treat their workers with respect.

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    Next Steps and Recommendations

    Our organization will continue the work in the 10th ward and surrounding areas to protect

    workers rights. Armed with this new information, we can focus our resources where they are

    needed and reach struggling workers.

    As part of our new project, Community Alliance for Economic Growth, we intend for this

    research to help assess the current economic realities and build strategies that create a strong

    local economy from the grassroots level, based on strong, self-sustaining working families.

    Workers are surprised by protections under labor laws and different schemes utilized to steal

    wages. Workers need personal tools and education to know how to protect themselves in the

    workplace and how to obtain the proper documentation if they find themselves in unfair working

    conditions. Protections that government agencies can provide for workers facing retaliation

    make agencies, like IDOL, indispensable partners to worker centers.

    In an effort to proactively take on wage theft in the 10th ward and based on the findings of this

    study, Centro de Trabajadores: Immigrant Workers Project recommends the following actions in

    partnership with the Illinois Department of Labor:

    Conduct workshops to educate community residents about their rights as workers and

    distribute easy-to-understand materials for workers to assess whether or not they are the

    victim of wage theft.

    Conduct labor rights and responsibilities workshops for local employers and distribute

    practical materials for businesses to know current labor law and how to operate business

    responsibly.

    Investigate problematic businesses who habitually steal wages and violate their workers

    rights to conduct enforcement to promote industry-wide improvements.

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