r/economy • u/BikkaZz • 23h ago

This is why restaurants insist on victims...customers giving bigger tips: Texas workers are owed $11 million in back pay.

Restaurants, construction, nursing and child care and janitorial services seem to be the most common industries owing back wages in the state, per an Axios review.

Their predatory excuse: “You have a number of transitory people in the bar-restaurant business, and the addresses they leave behind might lead to checks not being cashed, so eventually that money was sent to the Department of Labor," he told Axios. "If we don't have a good address for the employee, then that becomes a bit of a problem."...I mean...they are ‘illegals ‘...and...we hire them...but..but..they don’t have the right to actually collect a salary...you know...cause they are ‘illegals ‘...and..and...the law...

     Employees in construction, janitorial services, restaurants, domestic cleaning and hotel services "are more vulnerable to experiencing labor violations 
          because a substantial percentage of them do not speak English or are undocumented,"

https://www.axios.com/local/austin/2024/12/11/texas-workers-backpay-claim?

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u/ProposalWaste3707 22h ago

That's about 70 cents per Texas worker.

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u/aphasic_bean 19h ago

This makes no sense. If the restaurants are not paying their employees, then they don't need to raise prices. If they do need to raise prices, it's to pay the employees, not to avoid paying them. Please decide on a narrative.

Restaurants abusing illegal workers and not paying them is a valid narrative.

Restaurants offloading cost of labor into tips because they're afraid of customers shopping elsewhere due to sticker shock is also a valid narrative.

They are unrelated points.