U.S. Department of Labor

BOSTON, MA – The U.S. Department of Labor has asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to hold The Roof Kings LLC and its owner, Craig Galligan, in civil contempt for not fulfilling the terms of an order issued by the First Circuit in 2018. The order enforces a settlement agreement between the company and the Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

NEW YORK, NY – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) willful and serious citations against Tony Watson - doing business as Countryside Tree Service - were affirmed by an administrative law judge with the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. OSHA issued its citations after an employee died after being pulled into a wood chipper on his first day on the job at a Schenectady, New York, work site. The judge’s decision also orders the employer to pay $66,986 in penalties.

BOSTON, MA – After a U.S. Department of Labor investigation, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has entered a consent judgment and order requiring three Massachusetts restaurants and two of their owners to pay $355,944 in back wages and liquidated damages to 52 employees to resolve violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). They will also pay a civil money penalty of $36,448 because their violations were willful and repeated.

WASHINGTON, DC – The application period for the fall 2020 Honors Program in the Office of the Solicitor at the U.S. Department of Labor is underway. The program provides challenging professional opportunities for outstanding law school graduates with a passion for public service. The approximately 550 attorneys in the U.S. Department of Labor's Solicitor's Office enforce and interpret labor standards, occupational and mine safety and health laws, civil rights laws, pension and health benefit laws, and more on behalf of workers.

BOSTON, MA – The U.S. Department of Labor has asked the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts to hold two Massachusetts construction companies and two of their officers in civil contempt for not fulfilling the terms of an August 2016 consent judgment and order that requires them to pay $2,359,685 in back wages and liquidated damages to 478 employees.

SAN JUAN, PR – After a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation, Xperts Inc. – a San Juan, Puerto Rico, disaster response contractor – has paid $1,341,829 in back wages to 1,853 employees to resolve violations of the McNamara-O'Hara Service Contract Act (SCA), the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act (CWHSSA), and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has found Altor Inc. - a construction company based in Washington Township, New Jersey - and its president Vasilio Saites in contempt of court for failing to pay $412,000 in penalties assessed by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). OSHA has cited Altor for numerous safety violations, including multiple willful violations of OSHA's fall protection standards.

MANCHESTER, N.H. – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD), H.B. Provisions Inc. – a grocery store based in Kennebunk, Maine – has paid $92,055 in back wages and liquidated damages to 69 employees for violations of the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The employer has also paid $20,752 in civil money penalties.

AUGUSTA, ME – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Shawn D. Purvis, owner of Purvis Home Improvement Co. Inc. for egregious willful, repeat, and serious workplace safety violations. Purvis - a Saco, Maine, roofing contractor - faces a total of $1,792,726 in penalties. The enforcement action follows the death of an employee in Portland, Maine, on December 13, 2018.

NEW YORK, NY – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD), Chad C. Brown Inc. and owner Chad Brown will pay a total of $1,617,673 in back wages, liquidated damages, and civil penalties for willful violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the labor provisions of the H-2B non-immigrant visa program.

SAN JUAN, PR – The U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico has found Special Police Force Corp. – a security company based in Bayamon, Puerto Rico – and its owner Hector Rivera Ortiz liable for violations of the minimum wage, overtime, and recordkeeping requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

PROVIDENCE, RI – Following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD), the Department of Labor has filed suit against Madeira Restaurant Inc. and The Waterfront Restaurant and Lounge Inc. – operators of two East Providence, Rhode Island, restaurants – and their owner Albertino Milho and managers David Milho, and Karen DaSilva, alleging willful violations of the overtime and recordkeeping requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

BOSTON, MA – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) and subsequent litigation, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has issued a consent judgment ordering Stavros "Steve" Papantoniadis and Polyxeny "Paulina" Papantoniadis – owners of a chain of eastern Massachusetts-area pizza restaurants – to pay a total of $330,000 in back wages and liquidated damages to 150 current and former employees.

BOSTON, MA – The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit against Boston, Massachusetts-based contractor Tara Construction Inc. and its chief executive officer, Pedro Pirez, alleging that they retaliated against an injured employee by facilitating his arrest.

GUAYNABO, PR – Investigations by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) have resulted in the recovery of $5,579,939 in back wages and benefits owed to 993 employees of nine subcontractors that provided power generator operation support for hurricane recovery efforts in Puerto Rico.

BOSTON, MA – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has ordered Hermitage Club Realty LLC – a real estate company based in Wilmington, Vermont – to pay a former employee $22,693 in back pay and bonuses with interest, and $20,000 in compensatory damages.

BOSTON, MA – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD), the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has ordered P & B Partitions Inc. and its owner Ronald H. Biglin Jr. to pay $158,139 in back wages and liquidated damages to 50 employees, to resolve willful violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The company – based in West Berlin, New Jersey – was also assessed $33,880 in civil money penalties.

HARTFORD, CT – The U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut ordered Eastern Awning Systems Inc. – a manufacturer of retractable fabric patio awnings based in Watertown, Connecticut – and its owner Stephen P. Lukos to pay a total of $160,000 to two discharged employees who filed safety and health complaints with the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

NEW YORK, NY – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Western Waterproofing Co. Inc. – doing business as Western Specialty Contractors – for exposing employees to serious injuries at a New York City construction worksite. The St. Louis, Missouri-based contractor faces $155,204 in proposed penalties.

NEW YORK, NY – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD), the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York has ordered the operators of three Queens, New York, hotels to pay $360,543 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 83 employees to resolve violations of the overtime and recordkeeping requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The operators will also pay $28,914 in civil penalties and $625 in post-judgment interest.