Wage theft is common in low-wage industries in Pennsylvania.

Tens of thousands of workers — in restaurants, nail salons, warehouses, farms, car washes and other industries— lose out on millions of dollars in stolen wages each year.

Wage theft happens when employers deliberately pay workers below the minimum wage, deny them meal or rest breaks, fail to pay overtime premiums, or engage in other practices to cheat them out of pay.

So what should you do if you find yourself in this situation?

Key takeaways

Wage theft is illegal. Under the law:

• You must get paid regularly, on-time and exactly what you're owed.
• You must get paid for every hour that you work.
• Your employer is allowed to pay you in cash but should give you a paystub every time — listing the hours you worked, rate of pay, total pay, and any deductions (like taxes).
• Your employer cannot deduct money from your paycheck for broken equipment or materials.
• You must get paid for your last weeks of work, even if you quit or were fired.

If your employer doesn't abide by any one of these rules, then they may have committed wage theft — and you can report it and get the money you're owed.

What is wage theft?

Wage theft covers a wide range of offenses that relate to employers not paying their workers the money they are owed or taking money away from them, according to Rhiannon DiClemente, one of Community Legal Services’ staff attorneys for the employment unit.

Wage theft can look like:

• Failing to pay someone for all of...

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