On May 27, 2025, Philadelphia enacted the Protect Our Workers, Enforce Rights Act (“POWER Act”), amending Title 9 of The Philadelphia Code as it pertains to the following sections: “Promoting Healthy Families and Workplaces,” “Wage Theft Complaints,” “Protections for Domestic Workers,” “Protecting Victims of Retaliation,” and “Enforcement of Worker Protection Ordinances.”
The definition of who may file a wage theft complaint has been broadened. Now, any “employee” (including independent contractors misclassified as such) who performs work in Philadelphia is explicitly authorized to file a complaint for unpaid wages, regardless of immigration status. Additionally, the Office of Worker Protections (OWP), as opposed to just the offices the Mayor designates, may now initiate investigations based on information, even if a formal complaint has not yet been filed—allowing the City to proactively enforce the law in high-risk industries.
The POWER Act also changes the calculation for Paid Sick Time (PSL) for tipped employees (i.e., employees who customarily and regularly receive more than fifty dollars ($50) a month in tips from the same employment). Paid sick time means time that is compensated at the same hourly rate and with the same benefits, including health care benefits, as the employee normally earns from the employee’s employment at the time the employee uses the paid sick time and is provided by an...
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