June 30, 2021

St. Louis metal finishing company pays $45K in back wages, benefits to employee terminated illegally while on protected leave

ST. LOUIS, MO – The federal Family and Medical Leave Act entitles workers to take unpaid, job-protected leave to care for their own or a family member’s serious health condition, so when a St. Louis metal finishing company terminated an employee on protected FMLA leave without notice, the U.S. Department of Labor intervened.

June 29, 2021

Court orders two Minnesota restaurants to pay $435k in back wages following US Department of Labor investigation

MINNEAPOLIS – Imagine being on your feet 60 hours a week serving customers but getting paid for just 30, or working more than 10 hours a day as a cook or dishwasher for a flat salary and being denied minimum wage and overtime protections because your employer wrongly classified you as an independent contractor and not as an employee.

June 24, 2021

US Department of Labor to host webinar for Southeastern construction contractors seeking, working on federal contracts

RALEIGH, NC – The U.S. Department of Labor encourages construction companies and contractors in the Southeast that hold federal contracts or have an interest in obtaining one to take advantage of an upcoming educational webinar on Tuesday, June 29 from 10 to 11:30 a.m. EDT.

June 23, 2021

US Department of Labor recovers more than $50K in back wages for 54 caregivers at Mississippi home healthcare service

MATHISTON, MS – Home healthcare providers expect their workers to meet their clients’ many daily needs. In turn, these workers count on their employers to pay them fairly and legally so they may care for themselves and their families. A recent federal investigation found a Mathiston provider failed to pay its employees overtime and minimum wages as the law requires.

June 22, 2021

US Department of Labor announces dialogue to promote employment equity for women workers

WASHINGTON, DC The U.S. Department of Labor announced today’s launch of a national online dialogue to gather ideas to improve labor outcomes for women, especially economically disadvantaged women. The dialogue will be open until July 9.

June 22, 2021

Miramar Beach restaurant pays $108K in back wages, penalties following US Department of Labor investigation

MIRAMAR BEACH, FL The U.S. Department of Labor has found an upscale Miramar Beach restaurant again violating federal minimum wage and overtime laws, and redirecting a portion of servers’ tips to non-tipped workers illegally. 

June 22, 2021

US Department of Labor education, enforcement initiative seeks to increase Southeast grocery industry’s compliance

ATLANTA – During the pandemic, grocery store workers were among those on the front lines whose jobs put them in close contact with others – putting them at greater risk for contracting the coronavirus – while they ensured their neighbors had access to essential goods and services. In return, some of these workers, including many minors, faced wage violations or other workplace hazards.

June 22, 2021

Judge orders Nebraska restaurant and its owner to comply with wage laws, pay employees $17K in back overtime

KEARNEY, NE – A federal court has ordered a Kearney pizza and burger restaurant and its owner to pay $17,216 $8,608 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 13 workers after the U.S. Department of Labor found overtime and recordkeeping violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

June 21, 2021

US Department of Labor announces proposed rulemaking to protect tipped workers; clarify use of the tip credit

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to limit the amount of non-tip producing work that a tipped employee can perform when an employer is taking a tip credit.

June 15, 2021

US Department of Labor recovers more than $1M for 362 gas pipeline workers in five states after federal court affirms investigation’s findings

BLUE BELL, PA – Following a Pennsylvania federal court order that upheld the findings of a U.S. Department of Labor investigation, oil and gas industry contractor Henkels & McCoy Inc. paid more than $1 million in back wages to hundreds of employees for violating worker protection laws.

June 10, 2021

US Department of Labor investigation finds Campbellsville tobacco, hemp farm shortchanged temporary agricultural workers

CAMPBELLSVILLE, KY – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division enforces the labor provisions of the federal H-2A temporary agricultural workers program to prevent employers from exploiting temporary, nonimmigrant workers hired for seasonal agricultural work and from gaining an unfair competitive advantage over law-abiding employers.

June 8, 2021

US Department of Labor finds Centennial Hills Hospital Medical Center required employees to work after clocking out, manipulated timecards

LAS VEGAS – A Las Vegas hospital that required workers to complete necessary paperwork without pay after their daily shifts ended also manipulated employee time cards to avoid paying overtime, a federal investigation has found.

June 3, 2021

US Department of Labor recovers $162K in back wages for 45 employees of three Key West restaurants after investigations find overtime violations

KEY WEST, FL – Business owners must understand their legal responsibilities to pay overtime when it comes to their workers, as well as any workers employed through staffing companies, to avoid costly violations, a lesson learned by the operators of three Key West restaurants. 

June 2, 2021

Lackawanna County home healthcare company pays $140K in back wages, damages, penalties after US Labor Department secures court judgment

OLYPHANT, PA – A federal court has entered a consent judgment resolving a U.S. Department of Labor lawsuit filed after an investigation found that an Olyphant home healthcare agency failed to pay 98 nurses overtime wages they legally earned – including payment for ancillary work and work-related travel – in violation of federal law.

June 2, 2021

US Department of Labor seeks Idaho building, heavy construction employers’ input to establish accurate prevailing wage rates

BOISE, ID – The U.S. Department of Labor is asking businesses in Idaho’s building and heavy construction industries to participate in a survey to help its Wage and Hour Division establish prevailing wage rates, as required under the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts.

June 2, 2021

US Department of Labor fines Piggly Wiggly franchisee after teenager injured doing prohibited work

Nahunta, GA What could have been a catastrophic and life-changing incident for a teenage worker instead resulted in a painful injury, a frightening lesson and an opportunity for a Nahunta Piggly Wiggly supermarket franchisee to protect all of its workers better.

June 1, 2021

Court orders Long Island contractor to pay $500K to 69 employees following US Department of Labor investigation, litigation

NEW YORK – A Long Island construction contractor who often directed laborers and masons to work 10-hour days, five or six days a week, knew the Fair Labor Standards Act required employees to receive overtime pay when they worked more than 40 hours per week, but disregarded the law.

June 1, 2021

Pearl security company pays $18K in back wages to 43 workers to resolve overtime violations found in US Department of Labor investigation

PEARL, MS  Security industry workers too often find themselves misclassified by their employers as independent contractors instead of employees, which can shortchange workers’ wages and benefits and expose employers to liability for back wage payments.

May 28, 2021

Statement by US Labor Secretary Walsh on the President’s FY 2022 Budget

WASHINGTON, DC – The Biden-Harris administration today submitted to Congress the President’s Budget for Fiscal Year 2022. As the administration continues to make progress defeating the pandemic and getting our economy back on track, the budget makes historic investments that will help the country build back better and lay the foundation for shared growth and prosperity for decades to come.

May 27, 2021

Gainesville roofing contractor pays $31K in back wages to 30 workers after US Department of Labor finds employer denied overtime illegally

GAINESVILLE, FL – Roofing workers face hard work in hot weather, the risks of working at dangerous heights and, for 30 employees of a Gainesville contractor, concerns about not getting paid all of the wages they legally earned.