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More than 100,000 Philadelphia workers are being illegally robbed of their pay every week by their bosses.
The city has a “bad actor” roster, an attempt to shame employers, but it doesn’t always work.
Our main story follows the scale of Philly’s pay theft problem.
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—Taylor Allen (@TayIman Allen[email protected])
Two years after his boss cut him thousands of dollars in salary for his construction work, Marcos Tlacopilco has won in court.
But nearly five years later, Tlacopilco has never received the $12,000 he was owed.
The scope: Researchers at Temple Law’s Sheller Center for Social Justice estimate that 130,000 Philadelphia workers are being illegally robbed of their pay by their bosses each week. But most will not take action to get their due.
Who it affects: These workers are largely low-wage; many are undocumented. Some don’t know their rights or aren’t sure how to get help. They fear being fired or reported to immigration law enforcement, both illegal forms of retaliation.
But even if they file a wage theft complaint with the city Department of Labor or in court, enforcing court rulings and city labor determinations is a problem.
Philadelphia has a powerful wage theft law that gives the Department of Labor the ability to do just that revoke or suspend employers’ business licenses. But he never did.
Read on to follow the lengths some workers have to go to stand a chance of getting their hard-earned wages.
Tamika Jones, 46, could barely finish a sentence without gasping for air when emergency medical technicians arrived at her Delaware County home on Jan. 22, 2021.
An EMT did not check her temperature, blood pressure or heart rate but urged her not to go to the hospital.
He died the following day.
Jones’ sister Keisha Cappel has tried to hold healthcare workers accountable ever since, but attorney after attorney has told the family they had few options due to broad legal protections for healthcare workers during the COVID-19 public health emergency .
He finally filed suit last month in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and in US state court, a rare attempt to seek liability for claims of a botched COVID medical response.
Important note: According to COVID-19 complaint locator.
Read on to learn about family legal hurdles.
Young people have not been silent about their criticisms of the baby boomers.
It turns out, boomers don’t even like boomers. While more than half of millennials and 42 percent of Generation X say boomers “have made their lives worse,” nearly a third of boomers believe it, too.
A good portion of them could be the Jones generation. They’re young tail boomers who came of age in the disco and Watergate-obsessed ’70s, not the hippie-spawning ’60s and Vietnam War protesters. They believe they share little in common with their noisy cohorts.
Necessary context: The name Jones refers to the idea of ”keeping up with the Joneses” as well as the drug use slang of “jonesing” or wanting more.
While this generation has had many who achieved financial success, analysts say much was hurt by an economy that changed dramatically as they came of age.
Read on to learn more about why many of the kids of the 70s have an uncertain future.
The Philadelphia Museum of Art lost their Super Bowl bet against the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City as the Chiefs beat the Eagles.
What artwork is headed to Kansas City on loan?
A. George Romney’s Shepherdess
B. Sailing by Thomas Eakins
C. Venus rising from the sea – A deception by Raphaelle Peale
Q. None of the above
Find out if you know the answer.
Watching: A look inside one of Philadelphia’s last 24-hour diners struggling to stay.
Reading: Columnist Helen Ubiñas’ latest piece, “Slain Temple Officer’s Running Club Vows To Continue Its Fight Against Gun Violence.”
Tip: been dancing since 1970
COHAN PLAIDS
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And that’s all from me. Thanks for starting the day with The Inquirer. I’m starting my reading Take my hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez .
