Immigrants' Rights in the Workplace

On Labor Day, I was privileged to participate in the 7th Annual Faith and Labor Picnic held at the Trinity United Methodist Church in Memphis’ Historic Evergreen Neighborhood. Although it has been several weeks since Labor Day, I was again reminded of the importance of workers' rights when I read an article of the same name published by Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald of the National Jewish Outreach during the High Holidays. The article cites to Leviticus 19:13 which states, "the wages of a hired servant shall not abide with you all night until the morning." An explanation of the verse is that when one hires a day laborer to perform a task, the laborer must be paid on the same day in which the work was done. The employer is admonished not to wait until the following day to pay for services rendered lest the employer forget to make payment.

Too often we hear about immigrants, particularly those without lawful status, who were not paid for their hard work. Interfaith Worker Justice (IWJ) is a network of people of faith dedicated to educate, organize, and mobilize the religious community in the United States on issues and campaigns that will improve wages, benefits, and conditions for workers, including equal protection under labor law for immigrants. To find a group near you, go to http://www.iwj.org/template/page.cfm?id=92.