Today, Wednesday, November 20th, 2013, Houston City Council made history passing the first municipal ordinance cracking down on wage theft in Texas and only the second in a major metropolis in the U.S. South. The measure passed unanimously.In passing the Wage Theft Ordinance, Council sends a clear message that intentionally cheating workers of their pay - especially under city contracts - will not be tolerated in Houston.The ordinance establishes a process housed in the Office of the Inspector General through which employees can bring wage claims forward. Companies with a documented record of wage theft - either final adjudication from a court of competent jurisdiction or a criminal conviction - will be included in a publicly listed database on the City’s website and will be ineligible for city contracts or sub-contracts. Additionally, any company with a criminal conviction of wage theft will be ineligible to receive occupational permits and licenses.
Responsible Business Owners and Working Families Urge Council Support and Action to Bring Wage Theft DownAs Houston city council members shift into campaign mode to convince voters to re-elect them on November 5, thousands of Houstonians are urging them to close unfinished business when it comes to wage theft. Last week, faith and business industry leaders along with working families and employees of city subcontractors with cases of wage theft all gathered together in front of City Hall with a clear message: pass the Anti-Wage Theft Ordinance now! Following that show of support for the ordinance, Mayor Annise Parker has since stated that she will put the proposed ordinance on the Full Council Agenda for vote on November 13th.On October 15, supporters of the ordinance gathered with posters profiling two local families affected by wage theft. The group heard from speakers including Reverend Ron Lister, Reverend John Griffin, Sister Ceil Roeger, and Joe Marcinkowski.
October 23, 2013
Low-wage workers, grassroots community organizations, and responsible businesses are together writing a historic chapter in the City of Houston’s development. Beginning in late 2011, the Fe y Justicia Worker Center began building a coalition of organizations and responsible businesses – now 34 members strong – across the City of Houston to address the problem of wage theft and craft a sensible public policy solution.On July 23rd, workers, grassroots organizations, people of faith, and community leaders joined forces at the City Council’s Public Safety Committee Hearing held in the Houston City Council Chambers to make the case that an anti-wage theft ordinance is sound public policy
August 14, 2013
Last week we told you about Marvin Mundo and Marciano Cruz, two construction workers who are owed over $11,000 in unpaid wages by a subcontracting company which did renovation work on schools in the Houston Independent School District (HISD) last year.HISD Taking Steps Towards Improving Standards in ConstructionAfter affected workers and concerned parents spoke at January and February public Board meetings, HISD trustees have started talking about wage theft and payroll fraud. The HISD Construction and Facility Services Department and HISD Business Assistance Department have convened stakeholders to begin working on restoring confidence and raising standards and accountability in the bidding and construction process.
March 15, 2012
Marvin Mundo and Marciano Cruz are members of Houston Interfaith Worker Justice Center. They are also parents and hardworking Houstonians who did their fair day's work renovating Jane Long Middle School and Sharpstown High School, but never received their fair day's pay. Mundo and Cruz worked under the employment of Lawman’s Construction, a subcontractor for Fort Bend Mechanical, on these two Houston Independent School District (HISD) construction sites and, according to their reports, they are still collectively owed over $11,000 in unpaid wages a year later.Mundo and Cruz came to the Worker Center almost a year ago after the work on both sites was completed in March of last year. They reported the issue to the Worker Center after multiple attempts to resolve it on their own with their employer, Lawman’s Construction. The workers were in contact with Ricky Peters, owner of Lawman’s Construction,
March 08, 2012
