US Department of Labor recovers more than $433,000 in back wages for Walt Disney World employees

ORLANDO, Fla. — The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division has recovered $433,819 in back wages owed to 69 employees of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S. in Orlando, Fla. The company agreed to make the payments following an investigation that uncovered violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

A Wage and Hour Division investigator found that inventory control clerks in the park's Food and Beverage Department were not paid for work activities occurring before and after their normal shifts. In addition, they were not paid for working through their meal times and when working from home.

"While Walt Disney has specific rules regarding off-clock work, an investigation conducted by the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division found that managers within the company were not adhering to those important policies," said Wage and Hour Deputy Administrator Nancy Leppink. "It is not enough to have policies. Management must also ensure that all supervisors are implementing them."

The FLSA requires that covered employees be paid time and one-half their regular rates of pay, including commissions, bonuses and incentive pay, for hours worked over 40 per week. In general, "hours worked" includes all time an employee must be on duty, or on the employer's premises or at any other prescribed place of work, from the beginning of the first principal activity of the workday to the end of the last principal work activity of the workday. Additionally, the law requires that accurate records of employees' wages, hours and other conditions of employment be maintained. The current federal minimum wage for covered, nonexempt employees is $7.25 per hour.

For more information about this investigation, call the Wage and Hour Division's Jacksonville District Office at 904-359-9292. For more information about the FLSA, 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.