"A recent report published by Good Jobs First, a national policy resource center that promotes corporate and government accountability, found that under the second Trump Administration, there has been a significant drop in the federal enforcement of wage and workplace safety regulations. Simply put, under Trump, much less is being done to protect workers on the job. Between 2009 and 2024, the report found that federal labor law enforcement remained constant, with an annual average of $385 million collected in restitution, damages, and civil penalties."
"But since Trump took office in 2025, workplace enforcement by the federal Wage and Hour Division (WHD) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) of the U.S Department of Labor has only collected $130 million in combined wage and hour and safety penalties, a 66% drop compared to the previous years. The report found that in the first nine months of 2025, the WHD issued fewer penalties than in any year since 2009, an 83% decrease in average penalties."
Federal enforcement of wage, hour, and workplace safety regulations declined markedly during the first year of President Trump's second term. Between 2009 and 2024 federal labor law enforcement averaged $385 million annually in restitution, damages, and civil penalties. In the first nine months of 2025 the Wage and Hour Division and OSHA collected only $130 million combined, a 66% reduction. The WHD issued fewer penalties than any year since 2009, with an 83% average decrease. Wage theft enforcement cases fell 97%, workplace health and safety penalties dropped 47%, and overall enforcement cases fell 35%.
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