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

Transcriber:

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Helen Chang

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

你工作時，會預期能賺到錢。

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

你不會預期拿到的錢比承諾的還少，

or worse, nothing at all.

或更糟糕，什麼都沒拿到。

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

但那卻是各產業中

who work in a range of industries.

數百萬美國人的遭遇。

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

這個問題特別嚴重的產業 包括：農業、營造、

餐廳、衣服工廠、

garment factories, poultry plants,

家禽處理工廠、護理之家、臨時工，

nursing homes, in day labor

and among independent contractors.

以及獨立的包商。

It's called wage theft,

這叫做工資盜竊，且很有可能

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

你或你認識的人已經遇過了。

Wage theft occurs when individuals do not receive

工資盜竊指的是個人沒有拿到

their legally owed wages and benefits.

依法應該拿到的工資和福利。

Wage theft can take many forms:

工資盜竊的形式很多：

Paying below the minimum wage,

薪水低於最低工資、

withholding earned benefits, overtime, breaks or tips,

不給應得的福利、

超時工作、休息或小費、

misclassifying employees as independent contractors

把員工錯誤歸類為獨立包商，

and even outright non-payment.

甚至就是直接不付錢。

The Economic Policy Institute

經濟政策研究所

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

估計每年工作者因工資盜竊 損失的金額就高達五百億美金，

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

但大部分人甚至沒聽過這個問題。

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

如果很難想像五百億美金有多少，

試試這樣比較：

Yearly economic losses to auto theft, robbery and burglary combined

因為汽車偷竊、搶劫、 破門盜竊造成的經濟損失

加總起來還不到 每年一百四十億美金。

come to much less at 14 billion a year.

Wage theft impacts more than just the workers

工資盜竊影響到的不只是 沒有領到工資的工作者，

who don't get their wages.

It lowers wages in those workplaces and across entire industries.

也會造成那些工作場所 和整個產業的工資降低。

Plus, it robs communities of tax dollars.

此外，還搶走了社區的稅收。

And even more broadly,

更廣泛來說，

it rewards cheating,

是在獎勵作弊，

undermines competition and creates a race to the bottom

破壞競爭，

造成競相沉淪，

that hurts us all.

傷害到我們所有人。

雖然許多產業都會 受到工資盜竊影響，

Although wage theft impacts many industries,

my research focuses on one of the most vulnerable sectors,

我的研究焦點放在 最弱勢的部門之一：

day laborers,

臨時工，

most of whom are immigrants from Latin America

他們多為拉丁美洲移民， 為了現金而打臨工。

who seek daily work for cash.

You may have seen day laborers at a worker center,

你可能曾在這些地方 看過臨時工：工人中心、

outside a home improvement store or on a street corner.

居家整修器材店的外面，或街角。

On a typical morning at a street corner hiring site,

很常見的是，一早，在街角招聘點，

trucks screech to a halt

卡車刺耳地停下來，

and employers yell out how many workers they need

雇主大聲喊著他們需要 幾名工人以及工資多少，

and the pay rate

and workers rush to the passenger-side window.

工人搶著擠到乘客座 那一頭的車窗旁。

Day laborers may just have a couple of minutes

臨時工可能會有幾分鐘的時間

可以商量他們的工資、

to negotiate their wages,

hours and working conditions,

工時，和工作條件，

all in competition with other workers

都是和其他工人競爭，

and frequently with limited English proficiency.

且通常他們的英文都不太流利。

This rapid pace of the hiring process,

這種快步調的僱用流程、

unstable work,

不穩定的工作、

lack of immigration status

缺乏移民居留身分，

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

以及在經濟中最不受 規範的部門之一工作，

makes day laborers particularly vulnerable to wage theft,

讓臨時工特別容易遇到 工資盜竊的問題，

as well as other forms of exploitation,

以及其他形式的剝削、

harassment and victimization.

騷擾、傷害。

Since 2015, my research has focused

從 2015 年起，我的研究 就著眼在移民臨時工

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

在科羅拉多州遇到的工資盜竊。

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

我還訓練研究生團隊 成為現場調查員，

and taken them out to street corners

帶他們到街角及丹佛的 工人中心「人道主義中心」。

and Denver's worker center El Centro Humanitario.

In total, we interviewed 170 day laborers

我們總共訪談了一百七十名臨時工，

and conducted a follow-up survey of over 400.

並針對超過四百名臨時工 進行了後續調查。

Day laborer Bernal's story

臨時工柏納爾的故事

demonstrates how wage theft happens.

說明了工資盜竊是怎麼發生的。

柏納爾是在科羅拉多丹佛的 街角招聘點被雇主僱用，

Bernal was recruited at a street corner hiring site

in Denver, Colorado, by an employer

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

接著雇主開車把他載到 七十哩外的工地。

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

柏納爾從早上九點開始工作到深夜。

When the work was completed,

工作完成後，

his employer didn't pay him.

雇主沒有付錢給他。

What's more,

不只如此，雇主 還把他丟在的停車場，

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

離家有至少一小時路程。

The employer told him,

雇主告訴他：

"Tomorrow I'll come back and pay you,

「我今天沒帶錢， 明天回來付錢給你。」

I didn't bring any money."

When Bernal insisted on being paid,

柏納爾堅持要領錢，

the employer relented and gave me a check.

雇主才退一步給了他一張支票。

But when Bernal went to cash that check,

但，當柏納爾去把支票兌現時，

it had no funds.

帳戶沒有錢。

So then he was stuck with a bounced check fee

所以，他不但沒有拿到工資，

on top of his unpaid wages.

還要負擔支票跳票的手續費。

Bernal's story shows the many ways

柏納爾的故事說明雇主會用許多方式

employers try to cheat workers out of their wages.

騙走工人的工資。

They strand them far from home.

他們把工人帶到離家 很遠的地方，保證晚點付錢，

They promise to pay later.

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

宣稱沒有錢可以付。

或者明明帳戶存款不足還是開支票。

Or they issue checks with insufficient funds.

Employers often say that wage theft is an accident,

雇主通常都說工資盜竊是意外，

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

但臨時工的經歷呈現 這是種有模式且蓄意的做法，

and intentional practice

to benefit at worker's expense.

謀取利益，但由工人付出代價。

Sadly, Bernal's story is not unique.

感傷的是，柏納爾的故事很常見。

My survey results found

我的調查結果發現，62% 的 臨時工都遇過工資盜竊，

that 62 percent of day laborers had experienced wage theft

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

其中有 19% 都發生在 調查前的六個月內。

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

當臨時工因為未付的工資 而槓上雇主時，

they may stop answering the phone,

雇主可能會不接電話、

change their numbers or even threaten the worker.

換電話號碼，或甚至威脅工人。

Because day laborers work informally and off the books,

因為臨時工的工作 在檯面下且非正式，

some employers,

有些雇主，

they claim to have never hired the worker at all.

還會宣稱從來沒有僱用過這些工人。

Some employers vaguely or even directly threaten to call immigration

有些雇主會模糊或直接 威脅要通知移民局，

when workers speak up or complain.

來避免工人告狀或抱怨。

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

這是不合法的， 但雇主仍然逍遙法外。

That's because retaliation protections are weak

那是因為很難保護工人不受報復，

and immigrant day laborers don't tend to come forward

且移民工人通常不會想站出來，

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

因為他們不相信體制會保護他們。

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

美國的工資及工時法律要求雇主 支付工資給所有完成的工作，

regardless of legal status.

不論工人身分是否合法。

Otherwise, there's a perverse incentive to cheat.

不這麼規定就會鼓勵雇主欺騙工人。

However, the labor rights enforcement system is under-resourced

然而，執行勞工權力的體系 有資源不足的問題，

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

非常仰賴個人主動上門

才有辦法去追查案件。

That's a big ask for anyone

要任何人站出來都不容易，

and especially for vulnerable populations like day laborers.

何況是臨時工這種弱勢族群。

Not only does it take a good amount of legal knowledge

不只是需要大量的法律知識

to even know where to begin,

才能知道從何開始，

but there's also a steep opportunity cost.

還有很高的機會成本。

Day laborers worry about spending days,

臨時工擔心要花上數日、 數週、數個月，甚至數年時間

weeks, months, even years, chasing unpaid wages,

追著未付清的工資跑，

when they could just be out working the next job.

寧可把時間用來出外做下一份工作。

They also worry about retaliation.

他們也怕被報復。

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

許多工人因此始終沒有 提出索賠或提出又放棄了。

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

許多工人都說，

他們不想到處去吵架。

So wage theft continues because employers know

工資盜竊持續不斷，因為雇主知道

they're likely to get away with it.

他們很可能可以脫得了身。

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

那並不表示臨時工就完全不做什麼

來預防工資盜竊 或改善他們的工作條件。

or try to upgrade their working conditions.

At street corners,

在街角，臨時工會試著組織起來 訂出工資底限以避免削價競爭，

day laborers try to organize a wage floor to prevent undercutting

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

並在惡名昭彰的雇主人馬 經過時給他們警告。

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

比如，他們會大喊 「這個人不會付錢」，

to blacklist employers who mistreated workers in the past.

把過去惡待工人的雇主列入黑名單。

Other strategies include only accepting cash, not cheques,

其他的策略還包括

只收現金不收支票，

and insisting on getting paid every day,

並堅持每天領錢，

rather than waiting for employers

而不是等著做出保證的雇主 在一週結束時才付錢，

who promise to pay at the end of the week

or even bimonthly.

或甚至兩個月付錢一次。

Still, day laborers recognize that due to lack of work

不過，

臨時工也知道，因為缺乏工作機會，

and employer's relative power over them,

且相對之下雇主比他們有權勢，

that there's no guarantee.

因此無法保證什麼。

Only half of day laborers who had experienced wage theft

遇到工資盜竊的臨時工當中只有一半

did anything to recover their unpaid wages,

有採取任何行動去追回未付的工資，

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

其他人甚至不會向雇主 要回欠他們的錢。

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

只有三分之一會再多做一些，

向他人求助。

As many workers told me and student researchers,

許多工人告訴我和學生研究員，

there's nothing you can do.

他們無能為力。

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

每年，當我和學生 合作進行這個計畫時，

some students tell me that they realize

都會有些學生告訴我，他們發現

that they too have experienced wage theft.

他們也遇過工資盜竊。

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

他們的身分和移民臨時工很不一樣，

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

但也在很容易出現 工資盜竊的產業中工作，

such as childcare,

比如托兒、

restaurants, bars

餐廳、酒吧，

and in low-paying and unpaid internships.

還有低薪及無薪的實習。

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

事實上，

每年有五十萬科羅拉多人 為工資盜竊所苦。

The nature of work is changing.

工作的性質不斷在變。

We've seen it in the rise of freelancing,

我們見過自由接案的興起， 還有獨立承包、

independent contracting,

piece rate and part-time work and contingent work.

論件計酬、打工，以及臨時性工作。

Not only has there been a resurgence of day labor,

不僅臨時工的工作又再次復蘇，

but more jobs look increasingly a lot like day labor,

還有更多工作越來越 類似臨時工的工作，

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

即使我們用其他名稱來稱呼。

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

當然，這些新型的工作

有很大的彈性和很劇烈的競爭。

that comes from these new kinds of jobs.

But there also can be risks

但也可能會有風險，

when they're also increasingly characterized by low pay,

因為這些工作的特性 也越來越趨向低薪、

no benefits, job insecurity,

沒有福利、工作不安全、

缺乏雇主責任，

lack of employer responsibility

and are primed for labor violations

且常有勞動相關的違規， 如工資盜竊。

like wage theft.

They may be further prone to labor practices

這些工作也可能進一步出現 很傷人且羞辱人的勞動待遇，

that are quite harmful and humiliating,

but perfectly legal.

卻完全合法。

US labor laws are still based on relatively traditional definitions

美國的勞動法仍然

立基在相對很傳統的定義

and relationships between employers and their employees.

以及勞雇關係上。

Work arrangements that increasingly carve workers out of employee status,

工作安排上越來越會 將工人和員工身分切開，

not only lessen employer's responsibilities,

不僅讓雇主的責任變少，

but make it all the more challenging

還更困難

to hold them accountable for labor violations,

讓他們為違反勞動法負責，

as well as unsafe working conditions.

或為不安全的工作條件負責。

Wage theft is not exceptional.

工資盜竊並不算特殊。

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

它只是我們以獲利和彈性為名 來損害工作者的另一種方式。

in the name of profit and flexibility.

It's critical to update labor rights enforcement

很重要的是要將 勞動權益的實行做更新

to better evolve towards the changing nature of work.

以符合不斷改變的工作特性。

But that's not enough.

但那樣還不夠。

We also need to rethink and upgrade employment

我們也得重新思考

和改善就業，

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

讓人民的工作能夠 真正維持他們的生計。

And when we look for contractors to remodel our homes,

當我們找包商來做 家中的裝潢修繕時，

look for childcare or eat out in restaurants,

找褓姆或到餐廳用餐時，

we need to ask more questions,

我們得提出更多問題， 不只是問工作或服務的品質，

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

or even where the ingredients in our food come from,

或甚至食物的原料來源，

but also attuned to how workers are being paid

還要去了解他們如何付款給雇工

and being treated.

及如何對待雇工。

When we see rapid construction growth in our cities,

當我們看到城市中的建設快速成長，

we see signs of development and of progress.

我們看到的是發展和進步的跡象。

But we should also ask

但我們應該也要問，

for whom and at what cost.

對象是誰？代價是什麼？

臨時工的不安全感與風險

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

應該要讓所有人感到擔心，

about the future of work.

憂慮工作的未來。

Unless we transform our approach

除非我們能改變我們的方式，

to whose lives and labor matter.

這些人的生命和勞力都很重要。

Thank you.

謝謝。