Back in 1864, the United States passed legislation to enable immigrants to contract wages within the U.S. Under these laws, immigrants are to pay their way to the states or reimburse any company who has provided them with contract employment. Contract labor law today provides safe working conditions for factories that produce U.S. products abroad. These laws protect workers by providing and establishing adequate wages and safe working conditions and those said to be in violation of contract labor law can be issued severe penalties under the law. Typically, contract labor law comes into play for western companies (U.S. companies primarily) that outsource production and services to other countries such as China.