February 28, 2024

ICYMI: Acting Secretary Su visits diverse communities, spotlights Biden-Harris administration investments in good jobs, support for unions

WASHINGTON – As part of the most pro-worker, pro-union administration in history, Acting Secretary Su is traveling the country to engage with workers, visiting Oregon and Mississippi over the past two weeks. During the visits, she spoke with a diverse group of workers and community leaders about the Biden-Harris administration’s ongoing commitment to creating opportunities for all workers and building an economy from the middle out and the bottom up.

February 27, 2024

Readout: Acting Secretary Su, Spain’s Labor Minister Yolanda Díaz Pérez sign joint statement protecting workers from algorithmic bias in artificial intelligence

WASHINGTON U.S. Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su and Spain’s Second Vice President and Minister of Labor and Social Economy Yolanda Díaz Pérez met in Washington on Feb. 26, 2024. They signed a joint statement highlighting their shared concerns about algorithmic bias in automated systems and artificial intelligence that can lead to workplace discrimination of historically underserved and vulnerable groups. 

February 27, 2024

US Department of Labor investigation finds Fort Worth 7-Eleven store operator failed to pay workers for all hours worked

Employer name:        Gaston Group LLC operating as 7-Eleven

Investigation site:      1401 West 7th St.

                                              Fort Worth, TX 76102

February 27, 2024

Judgment removes president of defunct Cherry Hill manufacturer as 401(k) plan fiduciary, appoints independent fiduciary to distribute $47K in assets

Date of action:           Feb. 7, 2024

Type of action:          Motion for default judgment granted  by the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. The action follows a complaint and motion filed by the U.S. Department of Labor on June 15, 2023.

Defendants:               Marlton Pike Precision LLC 401(k) and profit-sharing plan

February 27, 2024

US Labor Department cites Selma brick manufacturer for exposing workers to respiratory hazards that can lead to incurable lung disease

SELMA, AL – U.S. Department of Labor safety investigators found a Selma brick manufacturer exposed workers to silica crystalline respiratory hazards that have the potential to lead to lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney disease. 

February 26, 2024

Department of Labor completed impact inspections at 15 mines with histories of repeated health, safety violations in January 2024

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor announced today that its Mine Safety and Health Administration completed impact inspections at 15 mines in 10 states in January 2024, issuing 188 violations.

The agency began conducting impact inspections after an April 2010 explosion in West Virginia at the Upper Big Branch Mine killed 29 miners. 

February 26, 2024

US Department of Labor obtains judgment requiring defunct Westmoreland County company, president to restore $40K to its health plan

Date of action:           Feb. 8, 2024

Type of action:          Motion for default judgment issued by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. The action follows a complaint and motion filed by the U.S. Department of Labor in November 2022.

February 23, 2024

US, Japan launch workforce development exchange to recruit and retain talent in high-tech manufacturing sector

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training Brent Parton is visiting Japan Feb. 20-24 to facilitate technical exchanges on workforce strategies for advanced manufacturing and the semiconductor sub-sector in the two nations. 

February 23, 2024

Administrative Law Judge upholds US Department of Labor findings of child labor violations, $38K fine for upstate New York water park

Date of action:                       Feb. 13, 2024

 Type of action:                      Summary decision

 Names of defendants:           Zoom Flume Water Park LLC (in East Durham, New York)

February 22, 2024

El Departamento de Trabajo de los EE. UU. recupera $37,000 en salarios atrasados para 37 trabajadores a los que un contratista de obras de Charleston les negó horas extras

Empleador:    EAS Homes LLC

                        9012 Timber St.

                        Charleston, SC 29406

February 22, 2024

US Department of Labor recovers $876K in back wages, damages for workers denied overtime pay by Norfolk home care employer

NORFOLK, VA – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has recovered nearly $900,000 in back wages and damages after its investigation found a Norfolk home care employer denied 108 workers their hard-earned overtime pay. 

February 22, 2024

US Department of Labor proposes nearly $2.5 million in penalties for Alabama sawmill, finds willful disregard for safety led to fatality

PHENIX CITY, AL – A federal investigation into an August 2023 horrific fatal incident at a Phenix City sawmill revealed, for the second time in three years, that the employer could have prevented a tragedy by following required safety rules. 

February 22, 2024

US Department of Labor, Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General form partnership to enhance enforcement, strengthen coordination

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

                      Office of the Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

WHAT: five-year memorandum of understanding signed on February 21 that establishes a formal partnership with these agencies.

February 22, 2024

US Labor Department cites global manufacturer of metal cast, auto parts for exposing workers to respiratory, electrical hazards at its Columbus facility

COLUMBUS, GA – Six days after opening a complaint inspection at a Columbus auto parts manufacturer in August 2023, federal safety investigators learned that a 41-year-old maintenance technician at the site endured severe injuries from an electrical transformer explosion and opened a second investigation. 

February 22, 2024

US Department of Labor recovers $97K in back wages for 26 workers after North Miami Beach deli failed to pay overtime at required rates

Employer:     Matryoshka LLC, operating as Matryoshka Deli Food

                       18100 Collins Ave. 

                        North Miami Beach, FL 33160

 

February 22, 2024

Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report

In the week ending February 17, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 201,000, a decrease of 12,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 212,000 to 213,000. The 4-week moving average was 215,250, a decrease of 3,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 218,500 to 218,750

February 22, 2024

US Labor Department recovers $37K in back wages for 37 workers denied overtime by Charleston construction contractor

Employer:      EAS Homes LLC

                        9012 Timber St.

                        Charleston, SC 29406

February 21, 2024

Department of Labor recovers $52K in tips, unpaid wages, damages after investigators found Saipan restaurants recklessly disregarded workers’ rights

Employer:      R&I Corp., operating as Mura Ichiban Restaurant and Nam Dae Moon Restaurant

                            PMB 303 Box 10003

February 21, 2024

US Department of Labor to host online educational seminar for agriculture industry employers, workers, other stakeholders

Who:               U.S. Department of Labor

What:             2024 Virtual Agricultural Seminar

When:             March 28, 2024, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. CST

Where:           Online event. Register to attend.

February 21, 2024

US Department of Labor finds Oklahoma aeronautical parts manufacturer exposed workers to numerous serious safety hazards

OKLAHOMA CITY –The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited an aeronautical parts manufacturer for exposing workers to nearly two dozen safety hazards following a complaint about a lax safety environment at the company’s plant in Catoosa. 

OSHA cited LMI Finishing Inc. – operating as Sonaca North America – for 23 serious violations of OSHA safety standards related to confined spaces, fall hazards and blocked exit routes.

OSHA inspectors found the employer did not: