{"product_id":"unpaid-the-past-present-and-future-of-wage-theft","title":"Unpaid: The Past, Present and Future of Wage Theft","description":"\u003cp\u003eby Matthew Cole\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eVerso\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e5\/26\/2026, paperback\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSKU: 9781804295663\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWhy work doesn't pay\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eUnpaid \u003c\/i\u003eupends conventional wisdom about how we value work, exposing wage theft as one of capitalism's enduring open secrets. From unpaid overtime and under-the-table jobs to algorithmic exploitation, there are as many ways to steal wages as there are to pay them. But what if wage theft isn't a bug but a feature of capitalism itself?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAcross the world, millions of workers exhaust themselves in billions of hours of free labour. As app-based gig work becomes increasingly common, ex­ploitation grows more sophisticated and harder to detect.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt doesn't have to be this way. Blending personal stories with a fresh, accessible take, \u003ci\u003eUnpaid \u003c\/i\u003etraces the long history of wage theft and reveals how employers continue to get away with it. Matthew Cole shows that wage theft is not just about broken laws but about the nature of property itself. He makes a powerful case for our collective right to reassert our labour-power.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReviews:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Passionately political. A vital read for anyone who works for a living\"\u003cstrong\u003e \u003c\/strong\u003e-- Gavin Mueller, author of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/burningbooks.com\/products\/breaking-things-at-work\" title=\"Breaking Things at Work\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eBreaking Things at Work\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"An absolutely essential guide to capitalist class relations. \u003ci\u003eUnpaid \u003c\/i\u003eunflinchingly catalogues the reality of labour exploitation under capitalism, presenting Marx's most important ideas in a clear, succinct and compelling way\" -- Grace Blakeley, author of \u003ci\u003eVulture Capitalism\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"The future is being stolen from us, day by day. The glorious technological future we are constantly being told is imminent is in fact, Matt Cole reminds us, built with unpaid labor. In this deeply researched and meticulously argued book, Cole provides a sharpened blade with which to take on the techno-oligarchs (and ordinary bad bosses, too)\" -- Sarah Jaffe, author of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/burningbooks.com\/products\/from-the-ashes-grief-and-revolution-in-a-world-on-fire\" title=\"From the Ashes\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eFrom the Ashes\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/burningbooks.com\/products\/work-wont-love-you-back-how-devotion-to-our-jobs-keeps-us-exploited-exhausted-and-alone-1?variant=39972450697267\" title=\"Work Won't Love You Back\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eWork Won't Love You Back\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Author:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMatthew Cole\u003c\/b\u003e is an Assistant Professor of Technology, Work and Employment at the University of Sussex and a life-long trade unionist. His research revolves around the political economy of work and technology, with a particular focus on wage theft. His writing has been published in \u003ci\u003eJacobin\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eNovara\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eVice\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eOpenDemocracy\u003c\/i\u003e, the \u003ci\u003eIndependent\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eSalvage\u003c\/i\u003e, and in various academic journals.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Burning Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52352114524443,"sku":"Unpaid","price":24.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0466\/5121\/files\/71x5yQe2aGL._SL1500.jpg?v=1781539435","url":"https:\/\/burningbooks.com\/products\/unpaid-the-past-present-and-future-of-wage-theft","provider":"Burning Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}