HERMITAGE, TN – Vazquez Drywall has paid $103,300 in back wages and liquidated damages to eight employees after a U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation found the company violated overtime and recordkeeping requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). WHD also assessed the Hermitage, Tennessee, company a $2,424 civil penalty.

WHD investigators determined Vazquez Drywall violated the FLSA's overtime requirements when it inaccurately classified employees as independent contractors, and paid them piece rates or flat salaries regardless of the number of hours they worked. This practice resulted in violations when these employees worked more than 40 hours in a week, but the employer did not pay them overtime. The Division also found the employer failed to keep accurate payroll records for these workers.

"Employers are obligated to pay their employees the wages they have legally earned," said Wage and Hour Division District Director Nettie Lewis, in Nashville, Tennessee. "Even if employees are paid piece rates, or on salaries, they are typically still due overtime when they work more than 40 hours in a week. The outcome of this investigation serves as a reminder to all employers to review their pay practices to confirm that employees are being paid as the law requires."

For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact the toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Employers who discover overtime or minimum wage violations may self-report and resolve those violations without litigation through the PAID program. Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd.

ATLANTA, GA - The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) will present an educational forum about developments in its policies and regulations, and its Payroll Audit Independent Determination (PAID) Program, in Alpharetta, Georgia, on October 24, 2018.

PAID facilitates resolution of potential overtime and minimum wage violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The program's primary objectives are to resolve such claims quickly and to improve employers' compliance with overtime and minimum wage obligations, and to ensure that more employees receive the back wages they are owed.

WHAT: Wage and Hour Division Educational Forum on PAID Program

WHEN: October 24, 2018
1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. EDT

WHERE: Alpharetta Public Library Auditorium
10 Park Plaza
Alpharetta, GA 30009

The forum will include members of the Division's Washington, D.C., office and regional staff. Attendance is free, but pre-registration is required. Complete advance registration here.

For more information about the PAID program, visit www.dol.gov/whd/PAID, or call 866-4US-WAGE.

For more information about this event, contact Rachel Mast-Matos at mast-matos.rachel@dol.gov or call 678-237-0540.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the launch of the New and Small Business Assistance and the Compliance Assistance Toolkits webpages. These new online tools assist American small businesses and workers with simple, straightforward resources that provide critical Wage and Hour Division (WHD) information, as well as links to other resources.

The webpages were established in response to feedback received from new and small business stakeholders voicing their need for a centralized location to secure the tools and information they need to comply with federal labor laws. These new webpages provide the most relevant publications and answer the questions most frequently asked by new and small business owners. These tools, in conjunction with worker.gov and employer.gov, ensure greater understanding of federal requirements and provide tools to help employers find resources offered by other regulatory agencies.

“The Wage and Hour Division has long understood that the majority of employers want to do the right thing and comply with the law, but they need to know how,” said the Wage and Hour Division’s Acting Administrator Bryan Jarrett. “These new webpages demonstrate our ongoing commitment to proactively help employers comply with the law and provide them the tools they need to understand their responsibilities. We encourage all employers to visit these new webpages and reach out to us for assistance at any time.”

In addition to these new resources, WHD recently made available compliance assistance videos that provide  brief, plain-language explanations of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) requirements and protections. The videos provide essential information employers need to understand their obligations under the law.

The Office of Compliance Initiatives (OCI)- housed within the Department’s Office of the Assistant Secretary of Policy - fosters a compliance assistance culture within the Department designed to complement its ongoing enforcement efforts. In August 2018, OCI launched a revamped worker.gov to provide information about workers’ rights and an all-new employer.gov to provide information about the responsibilities of job creators toward their workers.

For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact the Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE(487-9243). Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the Division.

SILVER SPRING, Md - The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maryland has approved a global settlement that allows the U.S. Department of Labor to recover $7,968,744 in back wages, fringe benefits and 401(k) plan assets for more than 2,000 security guards formerly employed by USProtect Corp., a defunct Silver Spring company that provided security services for federal buildings across the country. The decision resolves the Labor Department's actions against the company related to violations of the McNamara O'Hara Service Contract Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

Investigations were conducted by the department's Wage and Hour Division and its Employee Benefits Security Administration when the company could not meet its payroll. Investigators found that the company failed to pay hundreds of employees for their last 2 1/2 weeks of work, and many employees were not paid the prevailing wage for their geographic areas or fringe benefits. The company also failed to remit employee salary deferral contributions to their 401(k) plan accounts.

The settlement between the federal government and a bankruptcy trustee allows for a total recovery of $7,968,744, of which $6,951,977 was recovered for the employees' wages and cash fringe benefits. The remaining $1,016,767 was recovered for the employees' 401(k) accounts.

"I am very pleased that former USProtect employees will receive the back wages, fringe benefits and retirement assets they earned and are owed," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "This settlement represents a remarkable recovery for a bankruptcy proceeding and is due to the coordinated effort of the Department of Labor's agencies, Department of Justice attorneys, the bankruptcy trustee and various federal contracting agencies."

USProtect Corp. was contracted to provide security services for the Social Security Administration, the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency for the District of Columbia, the Naval Facilities Engineering Command and the District of Columbia Superior Court. Contracts covered services provided in California, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and the Virgin Islands.

The McNamara-O'Hara Service Contract Act requires contractors and subcontractors performing on federal service contracts in excess of $2,500 to pay service employees no less than the wage rates and fringe benefits found prevailing in the locality for the classification of work that they perform.

The investigations were conducted by the Baltimore District Office of the Wage and Hour Division and the Washington District Office of the Employee Benefits Security Administration. The bankruptcy matter was handled by the Justice Department working in cooperation with attorneys from the Labor Department's Regional Office of the Solicitor in Arlington, Va.

For more information about pay and benefit laws for contractors and other wage laws, call the Wage and Hour Division's toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available on the Internet at http://www.dol.gov/whd/. For help with problems relating to private sector pension and health plans, contact EBSA toll-free at 866-444-3272. Additional information can be found at http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/.

MILWAUKEE, WI – To ensure compliance with federal wage laws, the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) is conducting an education and enforcement initiative focusing on restaurants in Wisconsin's Fox Cities region and Milwaukee's East Side neighborhoods. The initiative includes providing compliance assistance tools and information to employers and industry stakeholders through educational outreach events.

WHD's outreach efforts include working directly with a wide variety of organizations in the selected areas to identify multiple ways to provide employers with the tools and information needed to comply with the law. WHD is engaged with employer organizations, community organizations, and other government agencies to ensure a wide distribution of information describing requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

"This initiative raises awareness among employers, employees, community organizations, and others regarding federal wage and hour laws," said Wage and Hour District Director David King, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. "Our ultimate goal is to increase industry-wide compliance. With more than 200,000 people employed in food-service jobs in Wisconsin, the Wage and Hour Division wants to make sure everyone knows and follows the rules."

The initiative will focus on the cities of Oshkosh, Neenah, Menasha, Appleton, Little Chute, and Kaukauna as well as Milwaukee's East Side neighborhoods.

WHD hospitality investigations conducted in the last three fiscal years found common violations that include employing servers to work only for tips; paying servers overtime at one-and-half times their direct cash wage rather than the full federal minimum wage; pooling tips illegally; misclassifying employees as independent contractors and then failing to pay them minimum wage and overtime; and failing to combine hours employees worked at multiple locations when determining when overtime is due.

The FLSA requires that covered, nonexempt employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour for all hours worked, plus time-and-one-half their regular rates for hours worked beyond 40 per week. An employer of a tipped employee is required to pay no less than $2.13 an hour in direct wages, provided that amount plus tips received equals at least the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. If an employee's tips - combined with the employer's direct wages - do not equal the minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference. Employers also are required to provide employees notice of the FLSA tip credit provisions and to maintain accurate time and payroll records.

The Office of Compliance Initiatives (OCI) - housed within the Department's Office of the Assistant Secretary of Policy - fosters a compliance assistance culture within the Department designed to complement its ongoing enforcement efforts. In August 2018, OCI launched a revamped Worker.gov to provide information about workers' rights and an all-new Employer.gov to provide information about the responsibilities of job creators toward their workers.

For more information about the FLSA and other federal labor laws, call the division's toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available at https://www.dol.gov/whd.

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – A total of 101 current and former employees of Luciana's Mexican Restaurant and Cantina at three Indiana locations will receive $54,638 in back wages following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) that disclosed overtime and recordkeeping violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WHD investigators determined the employer failed to pay servers and cooks overtime as required by the FLSA. Specifically, the employer failed to pay cooks for some of the hours they worked, and paid servers overtime at time-and-one-half their direct wages of $2.13 per hour, rather than basing the rate on the full minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, as the law requires. The employer also failed to maintain accurate records of hours worked and pay received by employees, resulting in recordkeeping violations.

The company has amended its payroll practices to ensure proper overtime calculations.

"The U.S. Department of Labor is committed to ensuring employees receive all the wages they have rightfully earned," said Wage and Hour Division District Director Patricia Lewis in Indianapolis. "Employers may avoid wage violations by contacting us for compliance assistance."

Employers who discover overtime or minimum wage violations may self-report and resolve those violations without litigation through the PAID program. For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the Division, contact the Division's toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by WHD.

MYRTLE BEACH, SC – Prime Retail Management Group Inc. - operator of two "Beach Bums" locations in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina - will pay $63,568 in back wages and liquidated damages to 41 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation determined the employer violated overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WHD investigators found that Prime Retail Management Group Inc. failed to pay employees overtime when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. Instead, the company paid workers their straight-time rates without regard to the number of hours they worked. Prime Retail Management Group Inc. also failed to maintain accurate time and payroll records, resulting in FLSA recordkeeping violations.

"Employers must pay employees the wages they have legally earned for all the hours they have worked," said Wage and Hour Division District Director Jamie Benefiel, in Columbia, South Carolina. "Other employers should take this as an opportunity to review their own pay practices to ensure that they are complying with the law. We remain committed to educating employers and employees about their rights and responsibilities so that violations can be avoided, and that employers compete on a level playing field."

For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact the toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Employers who discover overtime or minimum wage violations may self-report and resolve those violations without litigation through the PAID program. Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd.

ROBBINSVILLE, NC – Lovin Contracting Co. Inc. – a landscaping company based in Robbinsville, North Carolina – will pay $1,277,550 to 231 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division investigation uncovered violations of the labor provisions of the H-2B temporary visa program and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WHD investigators determined Lovin Contracting Co. Inc. paid workers rates the employer established based on the workers' positions and experience, rather than paying the prevailing wage rates required by the H-2B visa program, which were higher. When employees compensated with these lower rates worked more than 40 hours in a week, additional violations resulted when their overtime was also based on these illegal lower rates. The employer was also found to have paid other workers flat salaries, without regard to the number of hours they worked. The salaries sometimes failed to cover the required rates per hour, and the employer further failed to pay these workers additional overtime when they worked more than 40 hours per week.

Lovin Contracting Co. Inc. also failed to pay most H-2B workers' transportation costs to and from their home countries, as required, and failed to pay required subsistence payments to those workers while they were in transit. The company also failed to keep complete records for any travel expenses that were reimbursed to H-2B employees, and to maintain records of hours worked by employees paid on a salary basis.

"Employers must pay employees all the wages they have legally earned, and we must ensure that employers understand and abide by the provisions of the H-2B visa program to protect the wages and working conditions of both guest and U.S. workers," said Wage and Hour District Director Richard Blaylock, in Raleigh. "The program safeguards American employees against displacement while protecting foreign workers from being paid less than the wage they were promised."

Before the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services can approve an employer's petition for H-2B visa workers, an employer must file an application with the Department stating that there are not sufficient U.S. employees who are able, willing, qualified, and available. The application must also affirm that the employment of non-immigrant, temporary workers will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed persons in the U.S. The law provides for numerous employee protections and employer requirements with respect to wages and working conditions that do not apply to non-agricultural programs.

For more information about the H-2B temporary visa program, FLSA, and other laws enforced by the Division, contact the toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd.

SULPHUR, LA – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD), temporary staffing company Coastal Staffing Services LLC – based in Sulphur – will pay $1,104,466 in back wages to 1,412 employees involved in post-Hurricane Harvey recovery efforts in Southeast Texas to resolve violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WHD investigators found Coastal Staffing Services LLC violated the overtime and minimum wage provision of the FLSA when it failed to pay employees one and one-half times their regular rate of pay for hours they worked beyond 40 in a workweek and paid less than the federal minimum wage when it missed payrolls after Hurricane Harvey. The company violated recordkeeping requirements by failing to maintain accurate records of the number of hours employees worked each day and each week.

"American workers need their lawfully earned wages, especially in the wake of natural disasters and recovery efforts," said Wage and Hour Division District Director Troy Mouton, in New Orleans. "Through education and compliance assistance, the U.S. Department of Labor works to ensure that employers understand the requirements of the FLSA and that workers involved in rebuilding affected communities are paid their rightful wages."

Soon after Hurricane Harvey, WHD deployed teams to provide in-person compliance assistance in Texas and Louisiana. The teams met with workers, homeowners, and volunteers as well as with representatives of shelters and community service centers to increase awareness of federal safety, health, and wage and hour laws; provide compliance tools for employers; and help workers understand their rights.

Workers and employers with questions about the FLSA or any of the federal wage laws administered by the Division should call the Agency's toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). All calls are confidential.

Employers who discover overtime or minimum wage violations may self-report and resolve those violations without litigation through the PAID program. More information is available online at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.

ELKHART, IN – Recreational vehicle parts manufacturer Lippert Components – based in Elkhart, Indiana – will pay $338,151 in overtime back wages and liquidated damages to 1,199 current and former employees following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) that found violations of the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) at 53 plants nationwide.

WHD investigators found that when determining overtime rates, the employer ­­failed to include in the calculation certain bonuses employees had earned. Instead of computing overtime at time-and-one-half employees' total straight time earnings, including these bonuses, the employer based that calculation only on employees' pre-bonus earnings. Excluding the bonuses resulted in artificially lowered overtime rates, violating the FLSA.

"Employers are obligated to pay employees all the wages they have legally earned," said Wage and Hour Division District Director Patricia Lewis in Indianapolis. "Employers have an obligation to understand and to comply with the labor laws applicable to their business. We encourage employers to make use of the many tools we provide to help them, and to contact the Wage and Hour Division for assistance to ensure they understand their obligations."

In September 2016, Lippert Components began including the bonuses in question in employee's regular rates of pay in overtime work weeks. However, the employer failed to make any retro-active payments. As a result of this investigation the employer paid back wages for pay periods preceding the date that they began to comply with the law.

Employers who discover overtime or minimum wage violations may self-report and resolve those violations without litigation through the PAID program. For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the Division, contact the Division's toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by WHD.