Rebecca Galemba: How employers steal from workers -- and get away with it | TED

Transcriber:

翻译人员: Gentle Yang 校对人员: Yan Li Xiao

当你工作时，你期待得到报酬。

你不会想得到比承诺要少的工资，

或者更坏的情况——什么也得不到。

When you work, you expect to be paid for it.

但这恰恰发生在数百万

You don't expect to be paid less than you were promised

工作在各个行业的美国人身上。

问题尤其严重的是在 农业、建设业、餐饮业、

or worse, nothing at all.

But that's exactly what's happening to millions of Americans

服装厂、禽类养殖业、

who work in a range of industries.

疗养院、临时工

It's especially a problem in agriculture, construction, restaurants,

和独立合同工中。

这叫做克扣工资，

garment factories, poultry plants,

你或者你认识的人有可能经历过。

nursing homes, in day labor

and among independent contractors.

在当劳动者没有得到他们合法应得的

It's called wage theft,

工资和权益时， 就出现了克扣工资行为。

and chances are that you or someone you know has experienced it.

克扣工资有很多种形式：

支付少于最低工资、

Wage theft occurs when individuals do not receive

扣留已获得的权益、 超时加班、休息或消费、

their legally owed wages and benefits.

把雇员错划为独立合同工，

Wage theft can take many forms:

Paying below the minimum wage,

甚至毫不客气地完全不支付工资。

withholding earned benefits, overtime, breaks or tips,

经济政策研究所估计，

misclassifying employees as independent contractors

劳动者因克扣工资 每年会损失 500 亿美元，

and even outright non-payment.

但是大部分人甚至 压根儿没有听说过这个问题。

The Economic Policy Institute

如果 500 亿美元很难想象， 那么这样想，

estimates that workers are losing 50 billion dollars a year to wage theft,

每年汽车偷盗、抢劫和入室盗窃 总共带来的经济损失，

but most people haven't even heard of the problem.

If it's hard to picture 50 billion dollars, consider this.

也只有不到 140 亿美元。

克扣工资的影响远不止于

Yearly economic losses to auto theft, robbery and burglary combined

那些没有得到工资的工人，

它还降低了这些场所 和整个行业的工资，

come to much less at 14 billion a year.

此外它还剥夺了社区的税收。

Wage theft impacts more than just the workers

who don't get their wages.

甚至往更大了说，

它鼓励了舞弊行为，

It lowers wages in those workplaces and across entire industries.

削弱了良性竞争，带来恶性竞争，

Plus, it robs communities of tax dollars.

这会伤害我们所有人。

And even more broadly,

尽管克扣工资影响很多行业，

it rewards cheating,

undermines competition and creates a race to the bottom

我的研究聚焦于 其中最脆弱的行业之一：

临时工，

that hurts us all.

大多都是来自拉丁美洲的移民，

Although wage theft impacts many industries,

每天都在寻找打零工的机会谋生。

my research focuses on one of the most vulnerable sectors,

你可能会在工会里，在家装店门口 或者在街道的拐角处

day laborers,

看见临时工。

most of whom are immigrants from Latin America

who seek daily work for cash.

在一个平常的早晨，在街角的招聘点，

You may have seen day laborers at a worker center,

卡车的刹车声尖锐刺耳，

雇主们大喊着他们需要多少个工人，

outside a home improvement store or on a street corner.

以及支付多少比例的工资，

然后工人们冲向副驾驶的车窗。

On a typical morning at a street corner hiring site,

这些临时工可能只有一两分钟

trucks screech to a halt

and employers yell out how many workers they need

来协商工资、

and the pay rate

工时和工作条件，

and workers rush to the passenger-side window.

所有这些都要与其他工人竞争，

Day laborers may just have a couple of minutes

而且英语水平往往有限。

to negotiate their wages,

快速的招聘过程，

hours and working conditions,

all in competition with other workers

不稳定的工作，

移民身份的不确定性，

and frequently with limited English proficiency.

在最缺乏经济监管的部门之一工作，

This rapid pace of the hiring process,

这使得临时工在面对克扣工资，

unstable work,

lack of immigration status

以及其他形式的压榨、骚扰和侵害时，

and working on one of the least regulated sectors of the economy

尤其地脆弱不堪。

makes day laborers particularly vulnerable to wage theft,

2015 年起，我的研究 关注了在科罗拉多州

as well as other forms of exploitation,

那些生活在克扣工资中 的移民临时工的经历。

harassment and victimization.

我还培养了研究生团队 作为现场工作人员，

Since 2015, my research has focused

on immigrant day laborers' experiences with wage theft in Colorado.

然后带他们到街角处，

去丹佛市的工人中心。

I've also trained teams of graduate students as field workers

我们一共采访了 170 个临时工，

并且跟踪调查了超过 400 人。

and taken them out to street corners

and Denver's worker center El Centro Humanitario.

临时工伯纳 (Bernal) 的故事，

In total, we interviewed 170 day laborers

就展示了克扣工资是怎样发生的。

and conducted a follow-up survey of over 400.

伯纳在科罗拉多州丹佛市，

被一个雇主在街角的招聘点录用，

Day laborer Bernal's story

雇主开车把他拉到 70 里之外的建设工地上，

demonstrates how wage theft happens.

伯纳从早上九点工作到深夜。

Bernal was recruited at a street corner hiring site

in Denver, Colorado, by an employer

当工作完成时，

who then drove him 70 miles away for a construction project.

他的雇主并没有付钱给他。

不仅如此，

Bernal worked from nine in the morning until late at night.

他把伯纳滞留在停车场上 一个多小时不让他回家。

When the work was completed,

雇主告诉他，

“明天我会回来给你工钱，

his employer didn't pay him.

What's more,

今天我没带钱。”

he stranded him in the parking lot over an hour from home.

当伯纳坚持一定要工钱时，

雇主让步了，并给了他一张支票。

The employer told him,

但是当伯纳去提取现金时，

"Tomorrow I'll come back and pay you,

I didn't bring any money."

支票里面并没有钱。

When Bernal insisted on being paid,

所以他不得不在未支付工资的情况下，

the employer relented and gave me a check.

再支付一笔被拒付的支票手续费。

But when Bernal went to cash that check,

伯纳的故事揭示了雇主们

it had no funds.

千方百计地压榨临时工的多种花样。

So then he was stuck with a bounced check fee

on top of his unpaid wages.

他们把临时工困在离家很远的地方，

他们承诺以后支付工钱，

Bernal's story shows the many ways

他们说自己没有带钱来付工资，

employers try to cheat workers out of their wages.

或者他们会开出空头支票。

They strand them far from home.

雇主们经常说克扣工资是一个意外，

They promise to pay later.

They claim they don't have the money to pay.

但是这些临时工的故事 揭示了骗术的模式

Or they issue checks with insufficient funds.

和刻意的策划，

Employers often say that wage theft is an accident,

从而以工人利益为代价而获利。

悲哀的是，伯纳的故事并不是唯一的。

but day laborers’ experiences show how it’s a patterned

我的调研结果显示，

62% 的临时工都经历过克扣工资，

and intentional practice

to benefit at worker's expense.

而 19% 发生在受访的六个月之内。

Sadly, Bernal's story is not unique.

My survey results found

当临时工尝试面对雇主们 解决克扣工资的问题时，

that 62 percent of day laborers had experienced wage theft

他们可能不接电话，

and 19 percent just in the six months prior to being surveyed.

改变电话号码甚至威胁工人们。

When day laborers try to confront employers for their unpaid wages,

由于临时工的工作 是非正式的，无记录的，

因此有些雇主

they may stop answering the phone,

宣称从来没有雇佣过这些工人。

change their numbers or even threaten the worker.

有些雇主在临时工们开口抱怨时，

Because day laborers work informally and off the books,

some employers,

间接或者直接地用 给移民局打电话来威胁他们。

they claim to have never hired the worker at all.

这是非法的，但是雇主们却逍遥法外。

Some employers vaguely or even directly threaten to call immigration

这是因为劳动权益保护不足，

when workers speak up or complain.

而且临时工们不愿意站出来，

This is illegal, but employers get away with it anyway.

因为他们不相信保护他们的系统。

That's because retaliation protections are weak

美国工资和工时法要求 雇主必须在工作完成后支付工资，

and immigrant day laborers don't tend to come forward

与法律地位无关。

because they don't trust the system to protect them.

否则，就是一种不正当的作弊机制。

US wage and hour laws require employers to pay wages for all work completed,

但是，保障劳动权益实施的系统 缺乏资金和人力，

regardless of legal status.

很大程度上还是 依赖于个人来调查案件。

Otherwise, there's a perverse incentive to cheat.

However, the labor rights enforcement system is under-resourced

这对任何人来说都是一个不低要求，

尤其是对于像临时工那样弱势的群体，

and largely depends on individuals to come to it to pursue cases.

不仅需要大量的法律知识，

才能知道从哪里开始，

That's a big ask for anyone

and especially for vulnerable populations like day laborers.

而且还存在着巨大的机会成本。

Not only does it take a good amount of legal knowledge

临时工们担心， 当他们出去做下一份工作时，

可能会花费数天、 数周、数月甚至数年的时间

to even know where to begin,

but there's also a steep opportunity cost.

来追讨未付的工资，

Day laborers worry about spending days,

他们还担心报复。

weeks, months, even years, chasing unpaid wages,

这就是为什么许多工人 从不申请索赔甚至放弃。

when they could just be out working the next job.

就像很多工人们说， 他们不想卷入是非之中。

They also worry about retaliation.

所以克扣工资不断发生， 因为雇主们知道，

That's why many workers never file or give up their claims.

他们依然会逍遥法外。

As many workers said, they don't want to go around fighting.

这并不表示， 临时工对于防止克扣工资

或对于尝试提升工作环境， 什么也没做过。

So wage theft continues because employers know

they're likely to get away with it.

在街角，

临时工们试图组织制定一个 最低工资标准以防止砍价，

That doesn't mean that day laborers do nothing to prevent wage theft

并在声誉不佳的雇主 过来时提醒工人注意。

or try to upgrade their working conditions.

例如，他们会对 过去虐待工人的黑名单雇主

At street corners,

day laborers try to organize a wage floor to prevent undercutting

大喊 “这个不付钱”。

and warn workers of employers with bad reputations when they walk by.

其他策略包括： 只接受现金而不接受支票，

For example, they shout, "This one doesn't pay"

to blacklist employers who mistreated workers in the past.

坚持按天结算工资，

而不是等待承诺

Other strategies include only accepting cash, not cheques,

在周末甚至双月

才支付工资的雇主。

and insisting on getting paid every day,

尽管如此，临时工们仍然认识到，

rather than waiting for employers

who promise to pay at the end of the week

由于缺乏工作， 以及雇主对他们的相对权力，

or even bimonthly.

他们无法获得保证。

Still, day laborers recognize that due to lack of work

经历过克扣工资的临时工中，

and employer's relative power over them,

只有一半会采取任何措施 来讨回未付的工资，

甚至会向雇主索要拖欠的工资；

that there's no guarantee.

Only half of day laborers who had experienced wage theft

只有三分之一的人采取了 其他额外的措施来寻求他人帮助。

did anything to recover their unpaid wages,

正如许多工人和学生研究人员 告诉我的那样，

including even asking their employer for the money they owed them.

Just a third took the additional step of seeking assistance from others.

你无能为力。

每年，当我在这个项目上 与学生合作时，

As many workers told me and student researchers,

一些学生告诉我，

there's nothing you can do.

他们意识到自己 也经历过工资克扣问题。

Every year, when I collaborate with students on this project,

他们的职位与移民临时工完全不同，

some students tell me that they realize

但也在容易发生工资克扣的行业工作，

that they too have experienced wage theft.

如托儿所、

餐馆、酒吧，

They're in quite different positions than immigrant day laborers,

以及低薪和无薪实习。

but also work in industries that are prone to wage theft,

事实上，每年有 50 万 科罗拉多人遭受工资克扣。

such as childcare,

restaurants, bars

and in low-paying and unpaid internships.

工作的性质正在改变。

我们在自由职业、

In fact, half a million Coloradans suffer wage theft every year.

独立合同工、

计件工资、兼职和 临时工作的兴起中看到了这一点。

The nature of work is changing.

不仅是临时工复苏，

We've seen it in the rise of freelancing,

有越来越多的工作 看起来更像临时工了，

independent contracting,

piece rate and part-time work and contingent work.

即使我们并不想这么叫。

Not only has there been a resurgence of day labor,

当然，这些新兴类型的工作

but more jobs look increasingly a lot like day labor,

有很大的灵活性和竞争力。

但是，当他们越来越以

even if that's not what we would call them.

低工资、

Of course, there's a lot of flexibility and competitiveness

that comes from these new kinds of jobs.

无福利、工作不安全、

But there also can be risks

缺乏雇主责任为特征，

when they're also increasingly characterized by low pay,

并且容易发生工资克扣等 违反劳动法的行为时，

也可能存在风险。

no benefits, job insecurity,

他们可能更倾向于

采取有害、羞辱性、

lack of employer responsibility

and are primed for labor violations

但完全合法的劳动行为。

like wage theft.

美国劳动法仍然基于相对传统的定义

They may be further prone to labor practices

that are quite harmful and humiliating,

以及雇主和雇员之间的关系。

but perfectly legal.

US labor laws are still based on relatively traditional definitions

越来越多地将工人从雇员身份中 剥离出来的工作安排，

and relationships between employers and their employees.

不仅减轻了雇主的责任，

而且即使追究他们对

Work arrangements that increasingly carve workers out of employee status,

违反劳动法和不安全 工作条件的责任

not only lessen employer's responsibilities,

也变得更加困难。

but make it all the more challenging

克扣工资也不例外。

to hold them accountable for labor violations,

这只是我们以利润和灵活性为名

剥削工人的另一种方式。

as well as unsafe working conditions.

更新劳动权力执法以更好地适应

Wage theft is not exceptional.

不断变化的工作性质至关重要。

It's just one more way we've undermined workers

in the name of profit and flexibility.

但这还不够。

It's critical to update labor rights enforcement

我们还需要重新思考和提升就业，

to better evolve towards the changing nature of work.

使人们的工作能够真正支撑他们的生活。

But that's not enough.

We also need to rethink and upgrade employment

当我们寻找承包商来改造我们的家园、

寻找托儿服务或在餐馆吃饭时，

so that people's work can actually support their lives.

我们需要问更多的问题，

And when we look for contractors to remodel our homes,

不仅是关于工作或服务的质量，

甚至是我们食物中的成分来自哪里，

look for childcare or eat out in restaurants,

还需要考虑工人的工资

we need to ask more questions,

not just about the quality of a job or a service,

和待遇。

当我们看到城市建设的快速增长时，

or even where the ingredients in our food come from,

也看到了发展和进步的征兆。

but also attuned to how workers are being paid

但我们也应该问问，

and being treated.

为了谁，以及要付出什么样的代价。

When we see rapid construction growth in our cities,

临时工的不安全感和风险， 应该引起我们所有人

we see signs of development and of progress.

But we should also ask

for whom and at what cost.

对工作未来的忧虑。

除非我们做出转变，

The insecurity and risks of day labor should worry all of us,

明确谁的生存和劳动更重要。

about the future of work.

谢谢。

Unless we transform our approach

to whose lives and labor matter.

Thank you.