Is Being “Always Available” the New Face of Wage Theft in Modern Workplaces?

The modern-day working environment has become a constantly connected one, where workers are likely to receive calls, email messages, and texts after the usual working hours. This can be considered a normal situation, but it also raises questions regarding the subject of wage theft. The availability of all the time is the border between paid and unpaid work, particularly for salaried and hourly employees. Uncompensated extra time and effort translate into wage theft, directly affecting the income, work-life balance, and mental health. Since remote and hybrid work has become more prevalent, it is now important for both employees and employers to learn how constant availability is linked to wage theft.

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How Constant Availability Leads to Wage Theft

The practice can be considered as wage theft when the employees are supposed to be reachable after working hours without receiving overtime. This involves off-the-record jobs, lack of breaks, and overtime that is not paid. Wage theft is not easier to detect, but more widespread with the help of digital tools. Experts in labor say that unchecked expectations normalize wage robbery, whereby the cost is passed to the workers. To counter the situation with wage theft, it is necessary to have better policies that regulate it, time keeping, and enforce labor laws to achieve equitable compensation in the new workplace.

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