A survey of garment-sewing manufacturers in Southern California found that some employees were working in what officials called “sweatshops,” with certain workers making as little as $1.58 per hour.

The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division released its 2022 Southern California Garment Survey, based on data from 50 garment contractors and manufacturers.

“Despite our efforts to hold Southern California’s garment industry employers accountable, we continue to see people who make clothes sold by some of the nation’s leading retailers working in sweatshops,” Wage and Hour Regional Administrator Ruben Rosalez said in a news release.

“Many people shopping for clothes in stores and online are likely unaware that the ‘Made in the USA’ merchandise they’re buying was, in fact, made by people earning far less than the U.S. law require,” he added.

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What did officials find?

Officials said they found that 80% of contractors were in violation of one or more parts of the Fair Labor Standards Act, which establishes factors such as minimum wages, overtime pay, employment standards for minors and more.

• More than 50% of the time, officials alleged that employers were illegally paying workers part or all of their wages off the books, without payroll records...

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