As guest workers increase, so do concerns of wage cheating

By SUSAN FERRISS and JOE YERARDI
The Center for Public Integrity

From 2005 to 2020, U.S. employers around the country were ordered to pay more than $42.5 million in back wages to 69,000 workers who perform seasonal low-wage jobs on guest worker visas. Labor advocates worry that’s just the tip of the problem. Investigations by the Labor Department — which has special oversight over guest workers — aren’t keeping pace with a dramatic increase in workers, according to an analysis Center for Public Integrity.