to work faster, produce more items per hour, and sacrifice quality. Today, piece work and sweatshops remain closely linked conceptually even though each has continued to develop separately. The label "sweatshop" now refers more to long hours, poor working conditions, and low pay even if they pay an hourly or daily wage labour, instead of a piece rate. Minimum wage In the United States, the Fair Labor Standards Act requires that all employees, including piece work employees, earn at least the minimum wage. In calculating an appropriate piece work rate, employers must keep track of average productivity rates for specific activities and set a piece work rate that ensures that all workers are able to earn minimum wage. If a worker earns less than the minimum wage, the employer has to pay the difference. Exceptions to this rule include instances where: (i) the worker is a family member of the employer; (ii) if in any calendar quarter of the preceding year there were fewer than 500 person-days of work lasting at least one hour; (iii) in agricultural businesses, if a worker primarily takes care of livestock on the range; (iv) if non-local hand-harvesting workers are under 16, are employed on the same farm as their parent, and receive the piece work rate for those over 16. See also Gig worker Performance-related pay Putting-out system Piece-rate list ROWE References Footnotes Citations Bibliography External links Piece rate pay design - University of California Labour economics Employment classifications Wages and salaries Free market