June 10, 2022

US Department of Labor issues ‘Fair Recruitment Guidance’ as part of multi-agency effort to promote ethical recruitment of temporary migrant workers

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Departments of Labor and State, and the U.S. Agency for International Development today issued “Guidance on Fair Recruitment Practices for Temporary Migrant Workers,” with principles and guidelines on preventing abuse of prospective workers.

June 9, 2022

El Departamento de Trabajo recupera $161,000 en salarios atrasados, daños y perjuicios para 19 trabajadores de una tienda de artículos para automóviles tras descubrir infracciones del salario mínimo y de las horas extras

CANTON, GA - Un detallista de neumáticos y tienda de artículos para automóviles pagó incorrectamente a 19 trabajadores al retener los primeros sueldos y pagar horas extras con tarifas menores de lo que corresponde, según determinó una investigación del Departamento de Trabajo de EE. UU.

June 9, 2022

US Department of Labor finds Miami electrical subcontractor underpaid eight workers $37K in pay, benefits

MIAMI A Miami electrical and engineer contractor shortchanged eight workers by denying them a portion of their wages and benefits while they worked on a federally funded project at the Everglades National Park Flamingo Visitor Center in Homestead, a U.S. Department of Labor investigation found.

June 9, 2022

Departamento de Trabajo de EE.UU. recupera $348K en salarios y compensación por daños para 144 trabajadores de la construcción en Arizona

PHOENIX – Una investigación federal ha recuperado $348,380 en salarios atrasados y compensación por daños para 144 trabajadores de un empleador de construcción en Arizona que no pagó salarios por sobretiempo.

June 9, 2022

US Department of Labor cites Swainsboro pillow manufacturer for 7 repeat, 4 serious violations; proposes $190K in penalties

SWAINSBORO, GA – A Swainsboro pillow manufacturer whose history of safety and health violations includes three different incidents related to workers suffering amputation injuries is once again the focus of a federal workplace safety investigation, this time involving numerous repeat and serious violations.  

June 9, 2022

US Department of Labor recovers $348K in back wages, liquidated damages for 144 Arizona construction workers willfully denied overtime pay

PHOENIX – A federal investigation has recovered $348,380 in back wages and liquidated damages for 144 underpaid workers of an Arizona construction employer who failed to pay their overtime wages.

June 9, 2022

US Department of Labor recovers $31K for 93 workers following investigations at senior residential facilities in Alabaster, Anniston

BIRMINGHAM, AL – The U.S. Department of Labor recovered $31,757 for 93 workers of two Alabama senior residential facilities after its investigations found the employers denied the workers overtime wages.

June 9, 2022

US Department of Labor cites metal buildings’ manufacturer for willfully exposing employees to amputation hazards following worker’s serious injury

IMLER, PA – After a 40-year-old worker suffered the partial amputation of one finger and an injury to a second one while cleaning a machine at a metal buildings manufacturer in January 2022, federal workplace safety inspectors found the company willfully exposed the worker to amputation hazards.

June 9, 2022

US Department of Labor recovers $161K in back wages, damages for 19 Georgia auto shop workers after finding minimum wage, overtime violations

CANTON, GA – A Canton tire retailer and auto shop shortchanged 19 workers by withholding first paychecks and paying overtime at rates lower than required, a U.S. Department of Labor investigation has determined.

June 9, 2022

Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report

In the week ending June 4, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 229,000, an increase of 27,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 2,000 from 200,000 to 202,000. The 4-week moving average was 215,000, an increase of 8,000 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 500 from 206,500 to 207,000.

June 8, 2022

US Department of Labor takes action to reduce miners’ exposure to silica dust as work continues on an improved health standard

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration has launched a new enforcement initiative to better protect the nation’s miners from health hazards resulting from repeated overexposure to respirable crystalline silica. MSHA reports silica dust affects thousands of miners each year and, without adequate protection, miners face risks of serious illnesses, many of which can be fatal.

June 8, 2022

Court sentences Ohio businessman to 2 years in prison for failing to forward federal payroll taxes, stealing workers’ healthcare contributions

CLEVELAND, OH – A North Royalton businessman who failed to pay payroll taxes to the IRS and embezzled health care premiums deducted from his employees’ checks, will spend the next two years in prison and pay restitution of $558,697 to the IRS and $3,807 to the participants of his companies’ health care plan.

June 8, 2022

US Department of Labor cites New York agricultural products manufacturer after worker’s partial grain silo engulfment

SYRACUSE, NY – On Nov. 29, 2021, a supervisor at McDowell and Walker Inc. – a manufacturer and supplier of grains, feeds and other agricultural products – told an untrained employee to enter a grain bin to clear a feed buildup that clogged a silo entry point at the company’s Afton facility.

June 8, 2022

Federal judge finds Michigan home healthcare provider liable for $93K in overtime back wages, damages to 23 workers

DETROIT – A federal judge has found Independent Home Care of Michigan LLC and its owners Mary Clark and Kathryn Flick liable to pay 23 home healthcare workers a total of $93,331 – representing $46,665 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages– after the company failed to pay companion workers overtime wages.

June 8, 2022

US Department of Labor recovers $166K in back wages for 732 convenience store workers in Oklahoma charged for uniforms, register shortages

OKLAHOMA CITY – A recent U.S. Department of Labor investigation found a Shawnee, Oklahoma, gas station and convenience store made illegal deductions from workers’ pay for uniforms and cash register shortages that brought wages below the federally required minimum wage.

June 8, 2022

US Department of Labor, McCarthy Building Companies to promote workplace safety, health at University of Georgia Poultry Science Complex

ATHENS, GAThe U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has signed a strategic partnership with McCarthy Building Companies to promote worker safety and health during the construction of a poultry science lab at the University of Georgia in Athens.

June 7, 2022

Federal court orders Arizona construction employer to pay coercive fines of up to $120K every three months if it continues to falsify employee time records

Date of actions:         May 5 and May 27, 2022

Type of action:          Contempt Orders

Names of defendants:  Valley Wide Plastering Inc.; Jesse Guerrero; Rose Guerrero; J.R. Guerrero

June 6, 2022

US Department of Labor, Associated General Contractors of Missouri renew 25-year partnership to train, protect construction workers on job sites

ST. LOUIS – To reduce dangers faced by construction industry workers, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Associated General Contractors of Missouri renewed their partnership agreement to train and protect the state’s construction industry workers.

June 6, 2022

Federal court sentences Florida pharmacy owner to pay $865K in restitution after US Department of Labor finds healthcare fraud

CLEARWATER, FL – Following a U.S. Department of Labor investigation, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky has sentenced Nitesh Patel to serve 12 months’ probation, including 12 months of home confinement following his Nov. 3, 2021, guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud.