US Department of Labor alleges Pigeon Forge, Tennessee hotel operator willfully denied workers full wages, endangered minor-aged employees

Date of action:                       Jan. 17, 2023

Type of action:                      U.S. Department of Labor complaint

Names of defendants:           Pigeon Forge Hospitality LLC; Nimesh Patel

Allegations: The department alleges that Pigeon Forge Hospitality LLC and Nimesh Patel – operator of a Comfort Inn & Suites hotel in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee – willfully and repeatedly failed to pay employees at least the federal minimum wage rate and did not pay them at least one-and-on-half times their regular rate of pay for hours over 40 in a workweek – in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The department also alleges that the employer employed two minors under the age of 12 as hotel workers, and employed a 15-year-old minor in non-excepted baking and cooking activities, a hazardous occupation under federal law.

Quote: “The U.S. Department of Labor will not allow employers, such as Pigeon Forge Hospitality LLC, to exploit workers and endanger minor-aged children,” said U.S. Department of Labor Regional Solicitor Tremelle Howard in Atlanta. “Employers who willfully violate labor laws at the expense of employees and competitors must understand that we will do everything within our rights, including litigation, to bring them to justice.”

Court:                                     U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Knoxville

Docket Number:                    3:23-cv-00020