South Coast Labour Council secretary, Arthur Rorris, said the underpayment or denial of wages by employers was a massive problem in the region.

On May 15 Opposition leader Bill Shorten announced a crackdown on wage theft if Labor won the upcoming election.

A new arm of the Fair Work Commission would be established to resolve claims as quickly as possible.

"We estimate millions of dollars have been taken out of the wallets of workers in the South Coast," Mr Rorris said.

"We would like employees to be able to get a resolution quickly and effectively.

"Hospitality workers and young people are the most common victims of wage theft."

Mr Rorris referred to a court case in which workers were seeking to claim hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid wages from a restaurant in Nowra.

"Wage theft is very common in this region," he said.

Mr Rorris said currently workers can raise wage theft issues with their union or attempt to navigate the legal system themselves.

"It can take years to settle a dispute."