SENATE MEMORIAL 48

50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2012

INTRODUCED BY

Peter Wirth

A MEMORIAL

SUPPORTING EFFORTS TO ELIMINATE THE PRACTICE OF WAGE THEFT IN THE STATE.

     WHEREAS, wage theft, the practice of nonpayment or underpayment of wages to workers in communities, denies workers and their families economic prosperity and financial security; and

     WHEREAS, wage theft occurs when employers do not pay the minimum wage, do not pay overtime, require employees to work off the clock, fail to disburse final paychecks or misclassify workers as independent contractors to avoid paying their portion of payroll taxes, overtime, workers' compensation and benefits; and

     WHEREAS, wage theft is a crime that often goes unreported or unprosecuted; and

     WHEREAS, wage theft has a disproportionate impact on low- wage working families that live paycheck to paycheck, especially during tough economic times; and

     WHEREAS, workers who are victims of wage theft spend less in the local economy, are often forced to choose among basic necessities like food, clothing, health care, transportation and shelter and often need to rely on emergency public services and charities to make ends meet; and

     WHEREAS, wage theft causes unnecessary stress and financial hardship for workers and their children; and

     WHEREAS, employers who engage in such unscrupulous behavior undercut ethical businesses that are following the rules, putting them at an unfair advantage; and

     WHEREAS, the legislature passed a law in 2009 that provides protection against retaliation to workers who are victims of wage theft and additional penalties to employers who do not pay their workers the wages they are owed; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico employers must pay workers a minimum wage of seven dollars fifty cents ($7.50) per hour, which is higher than the federal minimum wage of seven dollars twenty-five cents ($7.25) per hour; and

     WHEREAS, wage theft creates a hostile working environment and undermines the ability of workers to promote healthy, safe, respectful and productive working conditions; and

     WHEREAS, the state supports the dignity of workers in the workplace and in its communities;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that it support efforts by community, labor and faith organizations, the New Mexico attorney general, the workforce solutions department and the United States department of labor to eliminate the practice of wage theft in the state; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the New Mexico attorney general and the workforce solutions department.

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