DIVE BRIEF
34% of restaurant workers
experienced more wage theft in
2021, OFW reports
Published Sept. 27, 2021
By Aneurin Canham-Clyne
Associate Editor
First published on
Dive Brief:
One Fair Wage released a report showing 35% of tipped
employees experienced wage theft in the past year. Wage theft
impacts 2.4 million workers, costing them $8 billion each year,
OFW said, citing 2017 data from the Economic Policy
Institute. OFW discussed the findings at a joint webinar
Monday with Department of Labor investigators.
OFW said its report indicated 34% of workers reported an
increase in wage theft since 2020. The survey was collected
through a combination of telephone calls, emails and in-person
interviews with 238 tipped workers.
OFW argues much of the wage theft experienced by tipped
workers occurred when employers failed to make up the
difference between the minimum wage and the tips received on
top of the subminimum wage, or to pay for overtime.
Dive Insight: