The Southern California garment industry is under scrutiny after a U.S. Department of Labor report released last month highlighted the prevalence of labor rights violations.
While many consumers believe a “Made in USA” label—at national retailers such as Lulus, Neiman Marcus, and Nordstrom, for example—ensures workers earn at least minimum wage, data compiled in the report, 50 randomly conducted compliance investigations in 2022, indicated otherwise.
According to the report—released on March 22—violations in terms of paying minimum wage were discovered in 80 percent of investigations, and 64 percent of contractors did not keep accurate time and pay records.
Wage theft—meaning when employees fail to receive the compensation owed through contract, state, or federal regulation—and the use of prohibited practices, including paying workers per item instead of by the hour, were additionally reported 32 percent of the time.
The lowest hourly wage uncovered was $1.58. The federal minimum wage is currently $7.25 an hour and $15.50 in California.
The findings “clearly demonstrate ongoing wage theft, which is something we hear from our members,” said Marissa Nuncio, director of the Garment Worker Center, a worker’s rights organization representing Los Angeles garment workers, in a March 30 email to The Epoch Times.
She additionally said the data demonstrate “familiar patterns of exploitation” and “the agency needs more authority to enforce the existing laws.”
The garment industry in Los Angeles is the largest in the nation according to the Garment Worker Center, representing 83 percent of all garment manufacturing sales.
Known for its Fashion District, Los Angeles garment workers generate approximately $1.5 billion in annual sales, according to the organization.
“Despite our efforts to hold Southern California’s garment industry employers accountable, we continue to see people who make clothes sold by some of the nation’s leading retailers working in sweatshops,” said Ruben Rosalez, a west coast regional administrator with the U.S. Department of Labor, in a news release March 22.
Multiple investigations conducted by the Department of Labor have also recovered $892,000 in back wages and damages for 296 workers in California for the fiscal year 2022, and the division reports $10.4 million recovered for more than 6,000 workers nationwide since 2017.
