HOBBS, N.M. – Nova Mud Inc., Nova Hardbanding LLC and Nova Sand LLC have paid $1.5 million – $750,000 in back wages and an additional, equal amount in liquidated damages – to 241 oil well service workers after an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. All three commonly owned and operated businesses violated overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The companies paid employees fixed semi-monthly salaries; without regard to the number of hours they had actually worked, resulting in overtime violations when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. In this case, employees routinely worked well in excess of 40 hours per workweek, without being paid overtime.

“Companies need to understand that failing to pay workers the wages they have rightfully earned will come at high cost to the employer,” said Betty Campbell, Southwest regional administrator for the division. “When employers fail to pay workers legally, it harms workers and their families and puts law-abiding employers at a competitive disadvantage. The liquidated damages paid to workers in this case demonstrate that the Wage and Hour division will continue to use every appropriate enforcement tool to ensure workers are paid what they have earned.”

Nova Mud Inc. and its related companies – Nova Frac Sand LLC and Nova Hardbanding LLC signed an agreement with the department requiring them to take several proactive measures to ensure workers are paid according to the law in the future. Measures include: setting up an anonymous complaint system for employees; posting information about recordkeeping requirements, and providing training to frontline managers and human resources staff about retaliation in the workplace.

The firms specialize in producing mud and chemical products used in multiple facets of oil and gas exploration and provide oil field services for most all major oil and gas producers, including Chesapeake, Concho Resources and Devon Energy. They have approximately 275 employees working in New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.

Since 2012, the Wage Hour division has concluded more than 1000 investigations nationally and recovered more than $40 million in back wages for over 29,000 employees in an initiative focused on oil and gas and related industries. As part of its shift toward industry-based enforcement strategies, focusing resources where data show violations are common and business models lend themselves to violations, the division’s ongoing education and enforcement initiative seeks to improve oil and gas industry compliance. This effort also expands to related businesses, such as water and stone haulers, trucking, lodging, and staffing companies. Common violations include considering salaried employees exempt from overtime requirements, and then failing to pay an overtime premium regardless of how many hours they work, as was the case in this investigation.  Failing to include bonus payments workers have received as part of their regular rates of pay when calculating how much overtime is due is another common violation.

The division offers training and education to promote compliance and awareness of FLSA requirements. It encourages industry leaders to serve as models for industrywide compliance. At the same time, the division informs workers and community groups about the initiative, their rights as workers, the division’s services and its availability to review and investigate worker complaints regarding violations. 

Simply paying an employee a salary does not necessarily mean the employee is not eligible for overtime. The FLSA provides an exemption from both minimum wage and overtime pay requirements for individuals employed in bona fide executive, administrative, professional and outside sales positions, as well as certain computer employees. To qualify for exemption, employees generally must meet certain tests regarding their job duties and be paid on a salary basis at not less than $455 per week. Job titles do not determine exempt status. On June 30, 2015, the Wage and Hour Division announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to update the regulations defining which white collar workers are eligible to receive pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/whd/overtime/NPRM2015.

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, including commissions, bonuses and incentive pay, for hours worked beyond 40 per week. Employers must maintain accurate time and payroll records.

For more information about federal wage laws, call the Wage and Hour Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.

Type of Action: Fair Labor Standards Act Consent Judgment

Name of Defendants:

• Tampico Mexican Restaurant Inc., Marietta, Ohio
• Tampico LLC, Parkersburg, West Virginia
• Acapulco Mexican Restaurant Inc., Moundsville, West Virginia
• Luis Salas, majority owner and general manager

Allegations: The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment in federal court ordering the three full-service restaurants, which share common ownership, and majority owner and general manager Luis Salas, named individually in the lawsuit, to pay $190,000 in back wages to 67 employees. An investigation conducted by the department’s  Wage and Hour Division found that the companies and Salas violated the Fair Labor Standards Act’s minimum wage and overtime provisions.

The minimum wage and overtime violations resulted when the employer:

• Required tipped employees to contribute a portion of their tips to an invalid tip pool.
• Paid kitchen staff less than the current federal minimum wage, currently $7.25 per hour.
• Paid workers some of their wages in cash, which was not recorded on their payroll
• Failed to pay employees overtime at time and one-half when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek.
• Failed to keep accurate records of hours worked and wages paid.

Resolution: Tampico and Salas will pay a total of $190,000 in back wages before March 31, 2016 as follows:

• $54,623.87 to 23 employees at Tampico Mexican Restaurant in Marietta, Ohio.
• $93,525.98 to 29 employees at Tampico LLC based in Parkersburg, West Virginia  
• $41,850 to 18 employees at Acapulco Mexican Restaurant in Moundsville, West Virginia.
• Three employees worked at more than one location.

Under terms of the consent judgment, in addition to paying the back wages, the restaurants will provide additional training and education for managers and employees about the FLSA, install a computerized time keeping system and provide detailed pay stubs to employees. The restaurants will provide a paper copy of this consent judgment, including all exhibits to all current employees and to all new hires until Feb. 28, 2017. The employer will also post copies of the consent judgment at all of their restaurants in locations where employee notices are customarily posted, where they will remain posted until Jan. 31, 2018.

Quote: “This judgment restores rightfully earned wages to 67 workers who were vulnerable to exploitation – vulnerable because of language barriers, a lack of awareness of their rights, or a fear of speaking up when those rights were violated,” said George Victory, district director for the Wage and Hour Division in Columbus. “The Wage and Hour Division is committed to protecting vulnerable workers who are too often denied fair wages and to leveling the playing field for law-abiding employers."

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 hourly rates for hours worked beyond 40 per week. Additionally, the law requires employers to maintain accurate time and payroll records and prohibits retaliation against employees who exercise their rights under the law.

Court: U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Eastern Division, Columbus

Docket Number: 2:16-cv-00044

Employer name: Toria’s Adult Living Facilities I & II, doing business as Toria’s Support Care Services Inc.

Investigation site: 3702 E. Osborne Ave., Tampa, Florida 33619

Investigation findings: Investigators from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, Tampa District Office, found that Toria’s Support Care Services violated the minimum wage, overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The employer misclassified one maintenance worker and one care provider as independent contractors instead of employees, and failed to pay them the federal minimum wage and overtime.

The employer also improperly paid other employees flat salaries without regard to how many hours they worked. In some instances, these salaries failed to cover the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, and when employees worked more than 40 hours in a week the employer failed to pay them legally required overtime. Simply paying an employee a salary does not necessarily mean the employee is not entitled to receive minimum wage and overtime. There are specific requirements for exemptions for salaried employees.

Resolution: Toria’s Support Care Services will pay back wages totaling $56,256 to nine employees.

Quote: “This industry employs some of the most vulnerable, low-wage workers we see,” said James Schmidt, the Wage and Hour Division’s district director in Tampa. “Misclassification is particularly harmful to these workers, as it cheats them out of the benefits and protections they’re legally entitled to as employees. Unfortunately, we are seeing too many employers using this practice in an attempt to lower their labor costs. We continue to use all available resources to end this practice and to ensure that these workers, and others like them, bring home every cent they have rightfully earned.”

Information: Information regarding the department’s  initiative to combat the misclassification of employees as independent contractors is available at:  http://www.dol.gov/whd/workers/Misclassification/index.htm

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 of pay for hours worked beyond 40 per week. Employers are prohibited from retaliating against workers who exercise their rights under the law.

For more information about the FLSA and wage laws or to file a complaint, call the Wage and Hour Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243); the Tampa District Office at 813-626-1177 or visit http://www.dol.gov/whd.

Type of Action: Fair Labor Standards Act Lawsuit Filing

Names of Defendants: Salsitas, Inc. doing business as Salsitas Mexican Restaurant & Cantina, and Oscar McBenttes

Complaint: The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit in federal court to recover approximately $21,390 in back wages and an equal, additional amount in liquidated damages totaling $42,780 for 17 employees of the Austintown restaurant. The suit also seeks an injunction against the company to prevent future FLSA violations. 

An investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division revealed the company and its part-owner, Oscar McBenttes, violated the minimum wage, overtime and record-keeping provisions of the FLSA. The firm failed to pay servers and wait staff for all hours worked and, as a result, these employees were not paid the current $7.25 per hour federal minimum wage for all of their hours. The employer paid a number of workers a fixed daily rate, or a fixed weekly rate regardless of the number of hours they worked in a given day or week. Investigators also found the company improperly classified two salaried cooks as exempt from overtime. When these employees worked beyond 40 hours in a workweek, they were not paid legally required overtime. The firm also failed to maintain accurate time and pay records.

The Wage and Hour Division assessed civil money penalties of $7,947 for repeated and willful violations of the FLSA. A previous investigation found similar violations at the Austintown location in 2012, and the company paid a total of $33,813 in back wages at that time.

Quote: “Employees in the restaurant industry are some of the most vulnerable workers we see. Many have limited English proficiency, and for a variety of reasons may be unlikely to step forward to complain when subjected to wage violations,” said George Victory, district director for the Wage and Hour Division in Columbus. “Denying these hard-working restaurant employees their legally required overtime pay hurts the workers and their families, and gives an employer an unfair competitive advantage over law-abiding employers. Other employers should take note that we will use all tools at our disposal to protect workers and level the playing field for law-abiding employers.”

Information: Simply paying an employee a salary does not necessarily mean the employee is not eligible for overtime. The FLSA provides an exemption from both minimum wage and overtime pay requirements for individuals employed in bona fide executive, administrative, professional and outside sales positions, as well as certain computer employees. To qualify for exemption, employees generally must meet certain tests regarding their job duties and be paid on a salary basis at not less than $455 per week. Job titles do not determine exempt status. In order for an exemption to apply, an employee's specific job duties and salary must meet all the requirements of the department's regulations. On June 30, 2015, the Wage and Hour Division announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to update the regulations defining which white-collar workers are eligible to receive pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/whd/overtime/NPRM2015.

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 hourly rates for hours worked beyond 40 per week. The FLSA generally provides that employers who violate the law are liable to employees for their back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages. Liquidated damages are paid directly to the affected employees. Additionally, the law requires employers to maintain accurate time and payroll records and prohibits retaliation against employees who exercise their rights under the law. For more information about the FLSA and other federal wage laws, call the Wage and Hour Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available at www.dol.gov/whd/fmla. 

Court: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division

Docket Number: 4-16-cv-00618

Employer: Plant Engineering Services LLC

Site: 1 Fluor Daniel Drive, Sugar Land, Texas

Investigation Findings: A U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation found Plant Engineering Services LLC violated the overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The employer incorrectly applied an exemption from the FLSA’s overtime requirements, meant for salaried executive and administrative employees, to hourly employees. To meet the criteria for exemption, employees must be paid a minimum guaranteed salary, and must perform job duties specific to that exemption. The employer also failed to maintain records of the regular and overtime hours employees had worked, violating the recordkeeping provisions of the FLSA. The investigation is part of the agency’s initiative to improve labor law compliance in the oil and gas industry.

Resolution: Plant Engineering Services will pay $112,884 in back wages and an equal, additional amount in liquidated damages totaling $225,768 to 17 employees, and will comply with the FLSA in the future.

Quote: “These employees deserve to take home every penny they rightfully earn,” said Betty Campbell, regional administrator for the Wage and Hour Division in the Southwest. “Employers cannot misuse exemptions to underpay employees. Doing so hurts not only the employees and their families, but also places law-abiding employers at a competitive disadvantage. Our ongoing initiative in this industry continues to educate employers and to move the needle on ensuring workers receive a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work.”

Background: Since 2012, more than 1,100 investigations have recovered more than $40 million nationally as part of the division’s oil and gas initiative. Based in Sugar Land, Plant Engineering Services provides engineering and project management services to the gas, power generation, mining and manufacturing industries.

Information: For more information about the FLSA, call the Wage and Hour Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.

DALLAS – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has added four companies and an additional $1.6 million in back wages for more than 2,500 employees as its effort to improve labor law compliance in the oil and gas industry continues.

Investigations of Jet Specialties Inc., of Boerne; Frank’s International LLC and Stream-Flo USA LLC, of Houston; and Viking Onshore Drilling LLC, of Odessa, found violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime provisions. Since 2012, more than 1,100 investigations of industry employers have recovered more than $40 million for more than 29,000 workers nationally.

“We continue to find unacceptably high numbers of violations in the oil and gas industry,” said Betty Campbell, regional administrator for the Wage and Hour Division in the Southwest. “We must ensure that employers pay workers the hard-earned wages they have rightfully earned. Employers who violate the law in their pay practices harm workers, their families and law-abiding industry employers. These cases demonstrate our commitments to ensuring workers are paid a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work.”

These investigations illustrate a pattern of industry employers failing to pay workers legally required overtime. Common violations include considering salaried employees exempt from overtime requirements, and then failing to pay an overtime premium regardless of how many hours they work; and failing to include bonus payments workers have received as part of their regular rates of pay when calculating how much overtime is due. Jet Specialties committed these violations. 

Frank’s International failed to pay proper overtime after not including bonus payments in workers’ regular rates of pay when computing overtime, and Stream-Flo USA paid nonexempt workers flat salaries without regard to how many hours they worked.  Investigations of both companies began in the Northeast, and expanded to other U.S. locations. Affected employees for both companies live in Colorado, Louisiana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah and Wyoming.

Viking Onshore Drilling LLC failed to include bonus payments in workers’ regular rates when determining overtime pay. Investigators found violations in Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma.  

Back wages owed to employees and employees affected:

As part of its shift toward industry-based enforcement strategies, focusing resources where data shows that violations are common and business models lend themselves to violations, the division’s ongoing education and enforcement initiative seeks to improve oil and gas industry compliance. This effort also expands to related businesses, such as water and stone haulers, trucking, lodging, water and staffing companies.

Working with industry leaders, employers and trade associations, the division offers training and education to promote compliance and awareness of FLSA requirements. It encourages industry leaders to serve as models for industrywide compliance. At the same time, the division is informing workers and community groups about the initiative, their rights as workers, the division’s services and its availability to review and investigate worker complaints regarding violations. 

Simply paying an employee a salary does not necessarily mean the employee is not eligible for overtime. The FLSA provides an exemption from both minimum wage and overtime pay requirements for individuals employed in bona fide executive, administrative, professional and outside sales positions, as well as certain computer employees. To qualify for exemption, employees generally must meet certain tests regarding their job duties and be paid on a salary basis at not less than $455 per week. Job titles do not determine exempt status. For an exemption to apply, an employee’s specific job duties and salary must meet requirements of the department’s regulations. On June 30, 2015, the Wage and Hour Division announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to update the regulations defining which white-collar workers are eligible to receive pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/whd/overtime/NPRM2015

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, including commissions, bonuses and incentive pay, for hours worked beyond 40 per week. Employers must maintain accurate time and payroll records.

For more information about federal wage laws, call the Wage and Hour Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.

PHOENIX – The U.S. Department of Labor sued a Phoenix-based pallet manufacturer after an investigation found that the company employed a combination of tactics to circumvent federal labor laws, including using fictitious names for workers, improperly labeling others as ‘vendors,’ and routinely destroying time cards at the end of each pay period.

The Department’s Wage and Hour Division conducted an investigation of Colmenero’s Pallets Inc. and found that the manufacturer violated the overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The employer attempted to conceal the employment of many of the workers by fraudulently claiming them as “vendors” rather than employees. These workers were paid straight time for all the hours they worked, including those over forty in a workweek, when the law requires those hours to be paid as overtime, at time and a half the workers’ regular rates. The employer did not deduct federal or state income taxes, social security or Medicare taxes from these employees’ wages, and did not pay the employer’s share of social security or Medicare taxes, worker’s compensation or unemployment insurance premiums.

The company allowed another group of workers, whom they did classify as employees, to record only up to 80 hours of work in a 2 week pay period, regardless of how many hours they actually worked. These employees regularly worked more than 60 hours per week, yet were paid only at straight time rates for their overtime hours, either in a separate check, often made out to a fictitious worker, or in cash.

Investigators established that Colmenero’s Pallets destroyed timecards at the end of each pay period, in violation of the recordkeeping provisions of the FLSA, and began to falsify time records during the investigation by clocking workers out prior to 40 hours in the work week, paying the overtime hours worked in cash, off-the-books.

“The Wage and Hour Division will not tolerate egregious violations such as those found in this case.  Denying these hard-working employees their rightful pay and misclassifying employees as vendors or independent contractors are unacceptable actions,” said Eric Murray, director of the division’s Phoenix District Office. “The court order obtained in this case demonstrates our commitment to pursue all available legal measures to ensure that workers are properly classified and compensated for their work. Other employers should take note, and ensure that they are paying their employees in compliance with the law.”

After the investigation findings and subsequent litigation, the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona has ordered Colmenero’s Pallets to pay $139,154 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 58 current and former workers. The employer will also pay an additional $21,692 in civil money penalties because of the willful nature of the violations. As part of the consent judgment reached, the company has agreed to notify all current and former employees of the case’s resolution, and to provide employees copies of their time cards showing the accurate number of hours worked. In addition, the Wage and Hour Division will provide worker education and training.

Employees misclassified as independent contractors, or in this case, vendors, are often denied access to critical benefits and protections to which they are entitled, such as minimum wage and overtime, family and medical leave, and unemployment insurance. Misclassification of workers may also generate losses to the U.S. Treasury, and Social Security and Medicare funds, and to state unemployment insurance and worker compensation funds. For more information about whether a worker is an “employee” under the FLSA, visithttp://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs13.htm http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs13.pdf

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, including commissions, bonuses and incentive pay, for hours worked beyond 40 per week. The FLSA provides that employers who violate the law are liable to employees for back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages.

For additional information about the FLSA, call the Wage and Hour Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.

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TAMPA, Fla. – Assisted living facilities are often judged by how well they care for their patients – but how well are they caring for their workers?

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division launched an initiative in 2015 to evaluate how well the adult assisted living facility industry in Central Florida complied with federal labor law requirements to pay workers their legally-required wages, including minimum wage and overtime. The education and enforcement effort focused on licensed facilities within Hillsborough, Pinellas, Manatee, Sarasota and Sumter counties, determining if workers were paid in compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act . 

In nearly 100 investigations in 2015, the division’s Tampa District Office found more than $413,000 in unpaid wages owed to 367 former and current employees. These investigations revealed a high level of noncompliance in the industry, prompting the division to collaborate with the Florida Department of Health’s Agency for Health Care Administration. The arrangement makes it easier to share information, helping the division to refer cases to the licensing agency for additional enforcement action, which may even result in license suspension.

“Our goal for this strategic initiative is to move the entire assisted living facility industry into compliance, not just the facilities we investigate. We will continue to use all of the tools and resources available to us to protect workers and create a level playing field for law-abiding employers,” said James Schmidt, director of the division’s Tampa District Office. “We are excited about our partnership with the state of Florida, and the results that we are seeing. Workers in this industry work long, hard hours, and deserve to take home every penny they rightfully earn.”

As an industry, assisted living facilities often use employment arrangements – such as subcontracting, and third-party management – that can obscure the worker-employer relationship, often at the expense of workers’ wages. Under these arrangements, violations of the FLSA’s minimum wage, overtime and record-keeping provisions may become more likely, as the distance between those performing the work and those profiting from it increases. The division’s fact sheet on the industry’s common pay practices explains the types of violations that often result, including the improper rounding of employees’ hours, failure to pay for travel time or on-call time, and failure to pay employees for time worked off the clock.

In addition to conducting investigations, the division conducts outreach events as part of the initiative for employers and industry stakeholders to provide compliance assistance and information on legal rights and responsibilities. The outreach also raises awareness among workers, community organizations and others regarding federal wage and hour laws and protections.

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 of pay for hours worked beyond 40 per week. Employers also are required to maintain accurate time and payroll records and to comply with the hours worked requirements.

For more information about the FLSA and wage laws or to file a complaint, call the Wage and Hour Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243), the Tampa District Office at 813-288-1242, or visit http://www.dol.gov/whd/.

Employers: Garcia Recycling Center & Metals, Inc.

Sites: 631 S. Main St., Santa Ana, California
2429 W. McFadden Ave., Santa Ana, California
13862 Seaboard Circle, Garden Grove, California

Investigation findings: Investigators with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found that Garcia Recycling Center & Metals paid employees at its recycling centers flat salaries, in cash, regardless of the number of hours employees worked, resulting in an overtime violation when employees worked more than 40 hours in a work week. The company also failed to keep records of hours worked and of cash payments made to workers, all violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act. 

Resolution: The company will pay $100,189 in back pay and an equal, additional amount in damages, totaling $200,378, to 15 employees. An investigation like this one is typical of those referred to the department’s partner agencies for further review of  federal and state compliance.

Quote: “Some recycling industry employers may believe they fly under the radar of law enforcement agencies when it comes to paying workers a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work,” said Rodolfo Cortez, director of the Wage and Hour Division’s San Diego District Office. “Our investigation of Garcia Recycling Centers & Metals proves them wrong. Employers who deny these workers their hard-earned wages create financial hardships for workers and their families.”

Background: The department issued a press release in 2015 chronicling the high rates of wage and hour violations in Southern California’s recycling industry.

Information: For more information about federal wage laws administered by the Wage and Hour Division, call the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.

Read this news brief in Españól.

SCOTT, La. – While Billy’s Boudin & Cracklins food preparers were mixing rice, meat and seasoning to make the company’s popular Cajun sausage, their employer was cooking the books. Instead of paying workers the wages they legally earned, investigators from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found that the owners were using those unpaid wages to lower their costs and increase profits.

“Denying employees their rightfully-earned wages is not only wrong, it’s illegal,” said Betty Campbell, regional administrator for the division in the Southwest. “This industry employs some of the most vulnerable workers we see.  Shorting these workers makes it even more difficult for them to make ends meet, and gives the employer an unfair advantage over its competitors. Cost-saving measures must never include breaking the law at the expense of workers’ livelihood.”

The division’s New Orleans District Office investigation determined that the employer violated the overtime, minimum wage and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Specifically, the employer:

• Paid employees in cash, at straight time, when they worked more than 40 hours in a week, rather than paying them legally-required overtime, at time and a half their regular wages, for those hours.
• Paid employees for their first 40 hours of work each week on its payroll from one location, but paid for any overtime hours on the payroll from another of its locations, at straight time. Employees paid in this manner never actually worked at second locations. Their overtime hours were simply shifted to another set of books to disguise the fact that overtime had been earned.

As a result of the investigation, the enterprise is paying $112,724 in back wages to 102 employees and $25,750 in civil money penalties due to the willful nature of the violations. Additionally, the employer signed an agreement with the division which requires the enterprise to:

• Prove it is currently in compliance and agree to comply with the FLSA in the future.
• Provide general notice of the FLSA protections to its employees.
• Provide an FLSA Handy Reference Guide link to all current and future employees and maintain evidence of such notification in personnel files.
• Train supervisors and managers on FLSA requirements at least twice per year.

The enterprise consists of three Louisiana-based establishments offering retail grocery and prepared food items owned by William ‘Billy’ Frey, II, and his wife Patsy Frey. They are Billy’s Mini Mart Inc. doing business as Billy’s Mini Mart and Diner in Krotz Springs; Billy’s Boudin & Cracklins LLC doing business as Billy’s Boudin & Cracklins in Scott; and Ray’s LLC doing business as Ray’s in Opelousas, Louisiana.

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, including commissions, bonuses and incentive pay, for hours worked beyond 40 per week. Employers must maintain accurate time and payroll records.

For more information about federal wage laws, call the Wage and Hour Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.