After the visa
Your Rights as a Worker
in the United States
Workers who arrive on employment-based visas are among the most exploited in the country, and almost always because nobody told them what they were owed. So here it is.
- Before your first shiftNot after something goes wrong
- Official sourcesLinked throughout
- Free and openNo account needed
Six things that are true whatever anyone tells you
You must be paid at least the minimum wage
Federal law sets a floor, and many states and cities set a higher one — where they differ, the higher figure applies to you. Being new, being sponsored, or being grateful for the job does not change what you are owed.
Overtime is usually required by law, not a favour
Most hourly workers must be paid one and a half times their regular rate for hours over forty in a week. An employer cannot simply decide not to pay it, and agreeing to waive it does not make waiving it lawful.
Your employer may not hold your documents
Nobody may keep your passport, your green card or your other papers to stop you leaving a job. This is a recognised sign of labour trafficking, not a normal condition of employment.
You are entitled to a safe workplace
You may raise a safety concern, and you may refuse work you reasonably believe is dangerous, without being punished for it. Federal safety law protects workers regardless of where they were born.
These rights do not depend on immigration status
Wage and hour protections and workplace safety protections apply to workers regardless of status. An employer who says otherwise is either mistaken or attempting to frighten you.
Retaliation for asserting a right is itself unlawful
Being fired, threatened, having hours cut, or being told your immigration case will be withdrawn because you raised a concern is a separate violation from whatever prompted it.
Signs something is wrong
None of these is normal. Any one of them is worth asking about immediately.
- Cash payment with no payslip and no record of hours worked
- Deductions you did not agree to, or that take you below the minimum wage
- Being told the sponsorship debt must be worked off before you are paid properly
- Threats to cancel your petition, report you, or contact your family if you complain
- Hours recorded differently from the hours you actually worked
- Being moved to a different employer or a different job than the one sponsored
What to do about it
Write it down as it happens
Your own record of dates, hours and what was said carries real weight. Keep it somewhere your employer cannot reach — a notebook at home or a private phone note.
Keep every payslip and message
Photograph payslips, save texts about scheduling and pay. Evidence gathered at the time is worth far more than a recollection later.
You can report without leaving the job
The Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division investigates unpaid wages, and OSHA handles safety. Both accept complaints from workers regardless of immigration status.
Get advice before you resign
Leaving very early can raise questions in an immigration case, and leaving without advice can cost you both the job and the leverage. Ask first — including us.
This page is general information about a US immigration category, not legal advice. ImmiAxis is not a law firm. For advice on your own case, consult a qualified immigration attorney or accredited representative.
Knowing this is protection in itself
Read It Before You Need It
The workers who get exploited are almost never the ones who knew what they were owed on the first day.
Your first months in America- Real protection
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