in a collective action brought by another aggrieved employee seeking to recover stolen wages in court. This provision limits the ability of employees to unite and pursue private lawsuits against employers. (21) Under the penalty structure of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, many employers who are caught violating such Act continue to violate the Act. A Department of Labor investigation found that one-third of employers who had previously engaged in wage theft continued to do so. (22) The Government Accountability Office and the Department of Labor have recognized that when employers are assessed civil penalties, they are more likely to comply with the law in the future and other employers in the same region—regardless of industry—are also more likely to comply with the law. (23) States that have enacted legislation to address wage theft by increasing the damages to which employees are entitled following violations of wage and hour laws have positively impacted the workers in such States. However, many States have not enacted such legislation and, worse still, some States do not have any laws protecting workers from wage theft or even agencies to enforce workers’ rights to compensation for work. This discrepancy in State laws has resulted in a fragmentation of workers’ rights across the United States, with some workers having a measure of protection from wage theft and other workers being left extremely vulnerable to wage theft. (24) Effective enforcement of wage and hour laws is critical to increasing compliance. Given the limited resources available for enforcement, enhanced strategic enforcement of Federal wage and hour laws is crucial. (25) For enhanced strategic enforcement to be effective, government regulators must work with community stakeholders who have direct knowledge of ongoing violations of Federal wage and hour requirements and who are in a position to prevent such violations. (26) Partnerships between regulators, workers,