Philadelphia has a rich history of labor activism, yet there are many workers especially in low-wage, non-unionized jobs that still face extreme exploitation through unsafe conditions, and rampant wage theft. Councilmember Kendra Brooks, also a Working Families Party member, has taken matters into her own hands to address these workplace injustices.
In early February, she introduced the POWER (Protect Our Workers, Enforce Rights) Act—a bold law that would strengthen labor enforcement and protect all workers by addressing wage theft, retaliation, and unsafe conditions.
The bill would provide workers the essential tools to hold bosses accountable, including measures to prohibit retaliation, require employers to retain records on paid sick leave with oversight from the Office of Worker Protection, and grant the city the authority to revoke licenses from violators.
The bill also proposes compensating workers for unpaid wages, creating a Worker Justice Fund to support those impacted by retaliation, and establishing a “bad actors database” to identify repeat offenders. The Worker Justice Fund, which would be administered by the city, would litigate cases where employers fail to comply with payment determinations owed to workers—a persistent problem experienced by victims of wage theft.
Low-wage workers, particularly those in retail, food service, and domestic workers, have been frequent victims of wage theft and retaliation often with inadequate protection. In 2024, District Attorney Larry Krasner charged Michael M. Tapia, Juan Carlos Tapia, and Juliana Santos-Tapia, owners of Pro Tri-State Movers LLC and EJ Relocations LLC, with involuntary servitude, theft by extortion, intimidation of witnesses or victims, improper classification of employees, and additional charges.
These capitalists allegedly withheld wages, denied overtime, forced employees to work through injuries, threatened physical violence, and deportation when workers spoke out. Cases like these underscore the need for stronger enforcement of labor protections. “Retaliation against workers is a major problem in Philadelphia, especially in sectors dominated by women of color. As a former domestic worker, this issue is personal to me,” Brooks said. These labor abuses are not isolated incidents but widespread and routine. According to research conducted by the Temple University Beasley School of Law each week an estimated 130,000 Philadelphia workers fall victim to wage theft.
Struggle with enforcement
Despite Philadelphia having some of the most progressive labor laws in the country, the city has struggled with ensuring these laws are effectively enforced. “Our labor laws are meaningless if we don’t have the tools to enforce them, and the POWER Act is a vital next step to continue the progress we’ve made to protect workers in our city,” Brooks said.
Low-wage workers—mostly women, immigrants, and people of color—remain at high risk of wage theft, unsafe conditions, and employer retaliation. They have historically been excluded from key labor laws since the New Deal, such as the Civil Rights Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and the National Labor Relations Act. Councilmember Brooks has been a vocal advocate alongside the National Domestic Workers Alliance, fighting to ensure these workers receive the protections they have long been denied. “It’s so hard when your workplace is someone’s home, and you work by yourself. One of the best ways to organize workers is when you find them in a collective and domestic workers usually work alone or in a vacuum. So it’s taken a lot of time for the NDWA among other organizations to reach out, build community, and collectively organize these workers” said Kaitlyn Henderson, a researcher at Oxfam.
With the POWER Act and the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, they aim to hold exploitative bosses accountable and help workers secure real dignity on the job. Another positive of the bill is that it extends these protections to undocumented workers. As Brooks stated, “We can’t sit by while workers face threats of termination and deportation simply for reporting an unsafe workplace, wage theft, or other violations of our labor laws.”
Under the proposed legislation, retaliatory threats of wrongful termination or deportation would be subject to expedited enforcement. This provision is designed to prevent employers from coercing undocumented workers into accepting unfair, unsafe, and illegal working conditions.
“Our legislation introduces a solution that allows workers to feel comfortable advocating for themselves when faced with unsafe working conditions and retaliatory employers,” Kwame Acheampong of the Philly Black Worker Project said.
Even though the bill would make Philadelphia a safer place for all workers, its effectiveness may be limited by budget constraints. In 2024, the city budget cycle cut nearly half a million dollars from the Department of Labor, weakening the Office of Worker Protections. With just one investigator per 200,000 Philadelphians, the implementation of the bill will continue to be hampered by inadequate funding. In contrast, the Philadelphia Police Department received a budget of $636 million, reflecting the city’s focus on enforcement of some crimes while labor violations remain largely unenforced.
So far, the bill has gained strong support from organized labor and community groups. Seth Anderson Oberman, Executive Director of Reclaim Philadelphia told People’s World “Reclaim Philadelphia stands in full support of Councilmember Kendra Brooks and the POWER Act because every worker—especially the Black, Brown, and immigrant women who make up the backbone of our city’s domestic workforce—deserves dignity, fair wages, and real protection from exploitation. This bill is a crucial step toward strengthening labor laws, holding abusive employers accountable, and ensuring that workers who experience retaliation or wage theft have the power to fight back. Philadelphia’s domestic workers care for our families, clean our homes, and make all other work possible—yet too often, they are treated as disposable. We refuse to accept that, and we urge City Council to pass the POWER Act so that our labor laws don’t just exist on paper, but are fully enforced for the people who need them most.”
As the Trump administration seeks to exert its influence over agencies to prioritize corporations over workers, local legislation like the POWER Act becomes even more crucial. If the federal government will not protect workers, it falls on representatives and advocates, like in Philadelphia, to ensure that workers will have the resources and legal protections that they need to stand up to unfair labor practices and anti-worker intimidation tactics.
“In this current climate, it’s even more important that we protect our workers — even if we have to have small wins on a local level until we can get something greater,” Brooks said.
The POWER Act has secured a veto-proof majority, ensuring its eventual passage into law. This victory is the result of sustained organizing efforts by community groups, labor unions, and worker advocacy organizations, alongside support from local elected officials. While the bill signals a significant step forward in strengthening labor protections, it will largely depend on proper enforcement. Greater funding for the Office of Worker Protections will be essential to ensure that the new law will not just be symbolic, but actively enforced to hold employers accountable for exploitation and unfair practices of vulnerable workers.
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