[muir_redwoods]

If a US coin is clearly marked as worth $1 or $50 and I accept it as pay for a job my employer and I agree is worth, say, $200/wk where is the crime? Did I force the treasury to mismark their coins? Did I cheat my employer?

I don't think so.

[bitterohiogunclinger]

“If a US coin is clearly marked as worth $1 or $50 and I accept it as pay for a job my employer and I agree is worth, say, $200/wk where is the crime? Did I force the treasury to mismark their coins? Did I cheat my employer?”
In your scenario there might be a crime in avoiding the minimum wage, but I agree that the IRS might be overstepping it's authority on this one. However, I would like to know where the guy is getting gold coins for face value? Likely the case involves a form of money laundering. It would be interesting to know the details of the case because I could make a similar claim that the government is forcing my employer to pay me in fiat currency that is worthless, therefore they own me.