Phelan-Tran ended the message with a smiley face, sending her best wishes to the woman who owed her $3,500 in wages. She never heard back.
Two-and-a-half years later, she is still waiting, even after the Ministry of Labour ruled she was legally owed the money. But the ministry still hasn’t managed to collect it, and appears to no longer be trying.
“It’s money that I deserve, it’s money I worked hard for,” says Phelan-Tran. “It’s heartbreaking that this how our government is treating us.”
Last year, 63 per cent of all orders to pay issued to employers by the Ministry of Labour went uncollected, according to figures requested by the Star.
Critics say that indicates a weak enforcement system that lets wage-owing employers off the hook while giving up on out-of-pocket workers.
Here’s how the province could ensure more workers get the wages they’re owed:
Establish a wage protection fund
The province used to maintain a $175-million wage protection fund. Employees could apply to receive up to $5,000 in unpaid wages when their bosses went bankrupt. That was scrapped by former premier Mike Harris's Conservative government. Lawyer Avvy Go says reviving it would provide at least one additional protection for workers, who are too often forced to “eat the loss.”
more
Wage theft puts woman at "rock bottom" — and she’s not alone | Toronto Star
Two-and-a-half years later, she is still waiting, even after the Ministry of Labour ruled she was legally owed the money. But the ministry still hasn’t managed to collect it, and appears to no longer be trying.
“It’s money that I deserve, it’s money I worked hard for,” says Phelan-Tran. “It’s heartbreaking that this how our government is treating us.”
Last year, 63 per cent of all orders to pay issued to employers by the Ministry of Labour went uncollected, according to figures requested by the Star.
Critics say that indicates a weak enforcement system that lets wage-owing employers off the hook while giving up on out-of-pocket workers.
Here’s how the province could ensure more workers get the wages they’re owed:
Establish a wage protection fund
The province used to maintain a $175-million wage protection fund. Employees could apply to receive up to $5,000 in unpaid wages when their bosses went bankrupt. That was scrapped by former premier Mike Harris's Conservative government. Lawyer Avvy Go says reviving it would provide at least one additional protection for workers, who are too often forced to “eat the loss.”
more
Wage theft puts woman at "rock bottom" — and she’s not alone | Toronto Star