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Wage and Hour Division (WHD)
Press Releases
U.S. Department of Labor |
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RALEIGH, N.C. -- The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has begun investigations into residential care and group homes in the Charlotte and Raleigh areas with a special strike force focusing on violations of federal minimum wage, overtime, recordkeeping and child labor law.
Group homes, including those providing adult resident care, family care, assisted housing and special care, employ more than 7,000 workers statewide. The investigations are projected to affect more than 1,700 workers in the Charlotte area and more than 400 workers in the Raleigh-Cary area.
“Our goal is to protect the low-wage and vulnerable workers in this industry who are often denied the pay legally guaranteed to them by law,” said Rick Blaylock, the Wage and Hour Division’s district director in Raleigh.
When violations are found, the Wage and Hour Division will require payment of back wages for up to two years and, in some cases, monetary penalties, liquidated damages and other remedies to promote industry-wide compliance with federal labor laws.
In cases where a middle-layer management company provides services to a residential care facility, investigators will focus on determining whether both companies may be held jointly liable for violations. With multi-establishment enterprises, investigators will be looking to enter into enterprise-wide agreements that affect all operations of the parent corporation.
As part of the initiative, Wage and Hour Division staff are identifying and contacting state and local agencies to elicit their support for this project, as well as informing employer organizations to engage them in supporting this effort. The goal is to expand the strike force statewide over the next 10 months.
For more information on this initiative, and other activities of the Wage and Hour Division, contact the Raleigh District Office at 919-790-2741. For information about laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, call the division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available on the Internet at http://www.dol.gov/whd.
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