The Salvation Army runs “180-day residential work-therapy programs” that allegedly “provide[] spiritual, social, and emotional assistance to people who have lost the ability to cope with their problems and provide for themselves.” What these centers don’t provide is minimum wages for the 40+ hours per week that participants must work. Individuals performing spurious and historically fraught “work therapy” should be considered “employees” within the meaning of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
Annually, about 150,000 adults experiencing homelessness, poverty, drug or alcohol addiction, and/or mental illness participate in one of the Salvation Army’s 120 Adult Rehabilitation Centers (ARCs) nationwide. According to the Salvation Army, “work therapy . . . is designed to teach strong work habits and to restore self-esteem, creating a sense of self-worth and accomplishment that helps individuals reintegrate into society.” Ongoing lawsuits allege that in exchange for shared living quarters, food, donated clothing, and “individual counseling for both spiritual and character formation,” ARC participants: must work at least 40 hours per week; earn as little as $1 and at most $20–$30 per week; must turn over their public benefits, like food stamps, to the Salvation Army; are prohibited from seeking external work; and must attend worship services.
ARC participants work in the Salvation Army’s thrift stores. Their labor involves sorting donations, hanging clothing, testing...
Tamil Nadu Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare M.R.K. Panneerselvam on Saturday (November 22, 2025) accused the Opposition parties of spreading false allegations against the State govern...