AVON PARK, FL – A labor contractor who provided farm workers to harvest blueberries for OzBlu in Venus failed to reimburse workers for the cost their visa fees in violation of federal law, a U.S. Department of Labor investigation has found.

In the week ending March 26, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 202,000, an increase of 14,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 187,000 to 188,000. The 4-week moving average was 208,500, a decrease of 3,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 211,750 to 212,000.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced that its Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs has issued a directive to promote effective enforcement and greater federal contractor compliance with equal employment opportunity laws.

BUFFALO, NY – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division recovered $106,623 in back wages and liquidated damages for 37 cashiers and cooks employed at three Pita Gourmet locations in Erie and Niagara counties after its investigation found the operator paid some employees cash off the books, paid straight time for overtime for hours worked over 40 in a workweek and failed to combine hours worked by employees at multiple locations.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today unveiled a public education campaign on the importance of mental health-friendly workplaces at the Society for Human Resource Management’s Workplace Policy Conference in Washington.

WASHINGTON – In an effort to support greater public awareness and improve delivery of unemployment insurance services to people who face obstacles to access, the U.S. Department of Labor today announced the award of $15.9 million in equity grant funding to state unemployment insurance systems in Alabama, Idaho, Missouri and New Mexico.  

SEATTLE – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has certified the Walsh Group, a commercial construction management company in Seattle, as a “Star” employer in the agency’s Voluntary Protection Programs.

Now in its 40th year, the VPP is the highest level of OSHA recognition for workplace safety and health excellence.

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh today joined Gov. Tom Wolf, leaders of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and Yellow Corp., and union members to announce the expansion of the trucking company’s 17th Commercial Driver’s License Driving Academy in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

SALT LAKE CITY – The U.S. Department of Labor is stepping up its efforts to identify child labor violations in the Salt Lake City area as school closings for the summer nears, and its Wage and Hour Division offers the findings of three recent investigations to remind employers about the regulations and limitations related to the employment youth.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration is proposing amendments to its occupational injury and illness recordkeeping regulation, 29 CFR 1904.41. The current regulation requires certain employers to electronically submit injury and illness information – that they are required to keep – to OSHA.

Employer name:       Groundworks Colorado LLC

                                          2575 U.S. 6 & 50, Unit A

                                          Grand Junction, CO 81501                    

WASHINGTON – The Biden-Harris administration today released the President’s Fiscal Year 2023 Budget and Fiscal Year 2022-2026 Strategic Plan. The President’s Budget details his vision to expand on the historic progress our country has made over the last year and deliver the agenda he laid out in his State of the Union address: to build a better America, reduce the deficit, reduce costs for families and grow the economy from the bottom up and middle out. 

WASHINGTON – A pesar de su papel crítico en la economía, los trabajadores agrícolas con demasiada frecuencia enfrentan salarios no pagados, transporte inseguro hacia y desde los lugares de trabajo y condiciones de vivienda deficientes.

WASHINGTON – Despite their critical role in the economy, farmworkers too often face unpaid wages, unsafe transportation to and from worksites, and substandard housing conditions.

MEMPHIS, TN – The operator of a Memphis Shell gas station and convenience store paid workers cash bonuses in place of overtime pay and persuaded them to sign altered time records to avoid paying full overtime wages due, a U.S. Department of Labor investigation has found.   

WASHINGTON – In a first-of-its-kind action, the U.S. Department of Labor has issued guidance to all 50 states and the nation’s territories encouraging them to designate more than 2,300 locally operated American Job Centers as voter registration agencies under the National Voter Registration Act.

WHO:             U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division

                        Doña Anna Community College

WHAT:           2022 Agricultural Employer Seminar

WHEN:          March 31, 2022

                       8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

DALLAS – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration is urging response crews and residents in areas affected by recent storms that spawned tornadoes in north Texas and New Orleans to recognize and protect themselves from hazards created by flooding, power loss, structural damage, fallen trees and storm debris.

Employers:                Westlake Chemical Lake Charles South, Westlake, Louisiana

                                    Wastewater Specialties LLC, Sulphur, Louisiana

PENSACOLA, FL – Despite the findings of a January 2021 federal workplace safety investigation, a Pensacola custom cabinet manufacturer continued to expose workers to fire risks, inspectors with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration found in a follow-up visit.