Employment Agencies Rapped by State Lawmakers

By LISA FLAUGH

Two state senators called on Governor Andrew Cuomo on Thursday to sign a law that would protect low wage job seekers across the state from being ripped off by job agencies that demand a fee up front for services.

The bill would require job agencies to hold a license and to display that license on advertisements and public documents. The bill would also eliminate advance fees for low wage workers and impose higher fines for those caught scamming job-seekers.

In an investigation led by State Senators Jeff Klein and Diane Savino, a representative from an immigrant organization provided an undercover video that was recorded while visiting an employment agency. The conversation in the video, in Spanish, showed that the agency demanded an up-front fee of $120 and would only look for employment for the candidate for three days. After three days of searching the fee would be non-refundable regardless if the candidate was found a job.

“Some of the hardest workers are getting ripped off by employment agencies,” said Klein,  Bronx legislator. “When you are getting a minimum wage job, a $200 fee to actually get a job puts a dent in the pocketbook of a low wage worker. I think we have a duty to make sure that we are still the land of opportunity here in New York.”

The investigation showed that low wage and immigrant workers in New York City are sometimes charged $120 to $400 up front in exchange for the agency’s service and in some cases aren’t found a job at all. Some victims were sent to non-existent addresses, others were ignored after repeated calls and visits back to the agency.

The low wage workers that the law would protect are those who typically work as busboys, wait staff, manual laborers and more. Many victims are immigrants who don’t speak English as their first language and do not understand their working rights until someone in the community reaches out to help them and teach them about labor rights in America.

Photo by Lisa Flaugh