NEW YORK – KDE Equine LLC — doing business as Steve Asmussen Stables — has entered into a settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor to reimburse its grooms and hot walkers $129,776 to resolve violations of the federal H-2B worker program which permits businesses to employ temporary visa workers.

This is the fourth time in recent years that Asmussen Stables has been ordered to make payments to workers  after a Wage and Hour Division investigation, most recently having been ordered to pay more than $500,000 in back wages and damages. The investigation in this latest case found the employer violated numerous commitments that it made during the H-2B visa application process to employ workers in New York. The violations occurred between December 2016 and December 2019.

Specifically, the division determined the employer’s violations included the following:

• Failing to pay workers for costs they incurred during travel to and from the U.S. at the beginning and end of the racing season, including visa fees.
• Seeking and obtaining kickbacks from workers, supposedly to cover Asmussen Stables’ attorney fees.
• Employing workers outside of New York, contrary to statements made to the government.
• Overstating the number of H-2B workers needed by the employer.
• Not disclosing material terms of the position to potential U.S. job applicants, such as that free housing may be available onsite.

“H-2B workers too often find themselves vulnerable to wage shortages and other violations of their rights,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director David An in Westbury, New York. “Employers like Steve Asmussen Stables who employ H-2B workers must comply with the law or face sanctions, including fines and potentially being barred from the program.”

In addition to the wage recovery, the department assessed Asmussen Stables a total of $75,223 in civil money penalties for its violations. To obtain the employer’s future compliance with H-2B regulations, the settlement includes enhanced compliance measures, including hiring of an independent monitor by KDE to conduct regular audits, providing workers with updated training in languages they understand, forbidding certain managers from being involved in the H-2B program and allowing the division to provide training to Asmussen Stables’ H-2B workers regarding their rights.

“The U.S. Department of Labor will pursue all necessary legal avenues to obtain proper compensation for employees and prevent future violations by employers. This settlement reimburses these underpaid workers, requires Asmussen Stables to pay penalties and seeks to change this employer’s behavior and prevent future violations by providing an independent monitor to perform regular audits,” explained regional Solicitor of Labor Jeffrey S. Rogoff in New York.

The federal H-2B worker program permits employers to temporarily hire nonimmigrants to perform nonagricultural labor or services in the U.S. The employment must be for a limited specific period, such as a one-time occurrence, seasonal, peak load or intermittent need.

The division’s Long Island District Office conducted the investigation. Department of Labor Senior Trial Attorney Jacob Heyman-Kantor litigated the case for the division before the Office of Administrative Law Judges. View the consent findings and the order approving the findings.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Employers and workers can call the division confidentially with questions, regardless of where they are from. The department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages through the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Download the agency’s new Timesheet App for iOS and Android devices – free and now available in Spanish – to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

Administrator, Wage and Hour Division, US Department of Labor v. KDE Equine, LLC d/b/a Steve Asmussen Stables

Case No. 2022-TNE-00003

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QUAKERTOWN, PA – A federal court in Pennsylvania has found the general manager of a Quakertown Hampton Inn in civil contempt for violating a February 2023 consent judgment. The contempt order requires the employer to pay $8,750 in back wages, an equal amount in liquidated damages and $500 in interest to affected hotel workers, as well as $2,000 to reimburse the department’s investigative and attorney’s fees.

The action follows an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division that found Ramket Enterprises paid straight-time wages for all hours worked and failed to keep time records, as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act.

In response to a Jan. 24, 2023, complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania by the department’s Office of the Solicitor, the court entered a consent judgment on Feb. 1, 2023, and the court ordered Ramket Enterprises and Ketan Joshi to pay $15,137 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 21 employees. They also paid $18,092 in civil money penalties assessed by the division for the willful nature of their violations. The judgment also forbids the employers from future FLSA violations.

After learning that Joshi texted the spouse of an employee due back wages and damages and demanded they repay part of the awarded money, the department filed a motion for civil contempt on April 25, 2023. On June 13, 2023, the court found the employers in contempt and required them to pay the additional back wages, liquidated damages, interest, and fees incurred by the department.

“Our investigation found Ramket Enterprises Inc. and general manager Ketan Joshi violated the terms of an earlier consent judgment and then shockingly demanded an employee kick back their rightfully earned wages. Federal law prohibits wage theft, retaliation or intimidation against workers engaging in a protected activity,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director James Cain in Philadelphia.

In addition to paying wages, damages, interest and fees, the court required the employers to post a notice to inform employees that the employers may not seek or accept repayment of any amounts paid under the judgment. Additionally, a division investigator must read a statement in Spanish to all employees that explains the employees’ rights to be free from retaliation and their right to keep the back wages, liquidated damages, and interest awarded to them by the court and distributed by the division.

“The U.S. Department of Labor will not stand by and allow employers to ignore or override their legal obligations. The department will use every tool available, including litigation, to prevent employers from violating workers’ rights,” said Deputy Regional Solicitor of Labor Samantha Thomas in Philadelphia.

The division’s Philadelphia District Office conducted the investigation. Senior Trial Attorney Andrea Luby with the department’s Office of the Solicitor in Philadelphia litigated the case.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including regulations prohibiting retaliation and a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Employers and workers can call the division confidentially with questions, regardless of where they are from. The department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages through the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Download the agency’s new Timesheet App, now available in English and Spanish for Android and iOS devices, to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

Julie Su, Acting Secretary of Labor, U.S. Department of Labor v. Ramket Enterprises, Inc., dba Hampton Inn, and Ketan Joshi

Civil Action No. 2:23-cv-0286-GAM

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EL PASO, TX – An El Paso home healthcare and hospice service provider expected employees to work long days to care for people in need but failed to pay 133 of its employees the overtime wages they earned, the U.S. Department of Labor has found.

The investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division led to the recovery of $501,211 in overtime and liquidated damages from San Lorenzo Adult Provider and Pediatrics for the affected workers.

The division determined the employer paid the affected employers straight time for all hours worked instead of paying time and one-half the regular rate-of-pay for hours over 40 in a workweek.

“San Lorenzo Adult Provider and Pediatrics’ failure to understand the law and calculate overtime properly had costly consequences,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Evelyn Ortiz in Albuquerque, New Mexico. “An employer’s pay practices must comply with federal laws that protect workers’ rights to their full wages, including their right to be paid time and one-half their regular rate for hours over 40 per workweek.”

San Lorenzo Adult Provider and Pediatrics in El Paso specializes in providing residential care for adults that includes bathing, cleaning, cooking and other companion services.

The Wage and Hour Division enforces laws governing pay practices and other labor standards, including the Fair Labor Standards Act, and determines if employers have misclassified employees as independent contractors and denied them critical benefits and worker protections.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. The division protects workers regardless of immigration status and can communicate with workers in more than 200 languages.

Download the agency’s new Timesheet App, which is available in English and Spanish for Android and Apple devices, to ensure hours and pay are accurate.         

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FORT WAYNE, IN – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment in federal court as part of its recovery of $188,915 in  overtime back wages and liquidated damages for 83 employees denied overtime pay by a Fort Wayne home care provider.

On July 27, 2023, U.S. District Court Judge Holly A. Brady in the Northern District of Indiana in Fort Wayne ordered UniqueHab Solutions LLC and its operators, John Musili and Tony Aduro, to pay the wages and damages owed to the affected employees. The workers provide supported living services to individuals with physical and developmental disabilities at the company’s branch offices in Fishers and Clear Vista.

The company will also pay $70,000 in civil money penalties after investigators found allegations the employer asked employees to sign a waiver of rights to overtime, a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. UniqueHab Solutions must pay 5.33 percent post-judgment interest on the back wages and liquidated damages.

“Home care employees work long hours assisting clients with daily living tasks that let them keep their dignity and live at home, yet too often we find industry employers violating overtime rules and denying these care workers their rightful wages,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Aaron Loomis in Indianapolis. “The Department of Labor will fight for justice for workers denied their hard-earned wages.”

In addition to requiring payment of wages and damages, the judgment forbids the employers from future FLSA violations, such as those found by the department’s Wage and Hour Division. These included UniqueHab’s failure to pay employees overtime for hours over 40 in a workweek and to keep accurate records of employees’ work schedules. The division reviewed the company’s employment practices from May 2019 to May 2021.

The court’s action comes after UniqueHab Solutions LLC refused to resolve the matter administratively, which led the department to file its complaint in federal court in June of 2022.

Founded in 2013, UniqueHab Solutions provides non-medical home care services for individuals with physical and developmental disabilities. These services include residential habilitation support services, respite services to relieve caregivers, healthcare coordination including management of medications, side effects, doctor visits and adaptive equipment, and transportation to appointments, social activities and gatherings.

In May 2023, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 801,000 healthcare and social assistance workers left their positions and the field had more than 1.7 million openings. As the aging U.S. population grows and demand for home healthcare services increases, employment in a variety of healthcare occupations is projected to grow 13 percent from 2021 to 2031 – faster than the average for all occupations – adding about 2 million new jobs.

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). Workers and employers can call the division confidentially with questions, regardless of where they are from. The department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Download the agency’s new Timesheet App for Android and iOS devices – free and available in English and Spanish – to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

Walsh v. Uniquehab Solutions LLC, John Musili, Tony Aduro

U.S. District Court, District of Indiana, Fort Wayne Division

Civil Action No: 1:22-cv-00189-HAB-SLC

SPOKANE, WA– An extensive U.S. Department of Labor investigation into the pay and employment practices at 23 stores operated by a Spokane-based supermarket chain has recovered more than $350,000 in back wages and damages for 602 employees and assessed penalties of $72,862 for the employer’s willful violations.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division discovered Spokane’s Rosauers Supermarkets Inc. did not pay employees for meal breaks less than 20 minutes long, as required, and failed to include evening premium pay, hazard pay and non-discretionary bonuses in regular pay rates when calculating overtime wages. Investigators found these violations at 16 stores in Washington, four in Montana, two in Idaho and one in Oregon.

The division also learned the employer violated federal child labor regulations by employing five minors, ages 16- and 17-years old, to operate a powered scrap paper baler and paper box compactor at its Ridgefield, Washington store.

“Too often, our investigators find grocery industry employers taking advantage of these essential workers by failing to pay them correctly,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Carrie Aguilar in Portland, Oregon. “In addition to denying hundreds of employees pay for short meal breaks, Rosauers Supermarkets jeopardized the safety of children by employing them to illegally operate dangerous machines.”

The company operates stores as Rosauers Supermarkets, Super1Foods and Huckleberry’s Natural Market.

Specifically, the division identified violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime and recordkeeping requirements at stores in Hood River, Oregon; in Lewiston and Moscow, Idaho; in Bozeman, Kalispell, Libby and Missoula, Montana; and in Colfax, Colville, Ellensburg, Pullman, Ridgefield, Spokane, Walla Walla and Yakima, Washington. Investigators found the child labor violations at the Ridgefield location.

“The U.S. Department of Labor is determined to enforce laws that protect workers’ rights to be paid fully and to prevent young employees from being employed in dangerous jobs. The Fair Labor Standards Act allows for developmental experiences but restricts the employment of young workers in certain jobs and provides for penalties when employers do not follow the law,” Aguilar added.

In addition to recovering $175,363 in unpaid overtime wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages, the penalties assessed by the department included $17,820 for repeated child labor violations. The division cited the employer for similar child labor infractions at 10 stores in 1993.

The YouthRules! initiative promotes positive and safe work experiences for teens by providing information about protections for young workers to youth, parents, employers and educators. Through this initiative, the U.S. Department of Labor and its partners promote developmental work experiences that help prepare young workers to enter the workforce. The Wage and Hour Division has also published Seven Child Labor Best Practices for Employers to help employers comply with the law.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Employers and workers can call the division confidentially with questions, regardless of where they are from. The department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages through the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Download the agency’s new Timesheet App for iOS and Android devices – free and now available in Spanish – to track hours and pay.

Employer name:       Mt. Clifton Fruit Company LLC

Investigation site:     17581 Mechanicsville Road, Timberville, VA 22853

Investigative findings: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found the employer violated multiple requirements of the H-2A agricultural worker program by failing to do the following:

• Compensate 55 workers, 50 of whom came from Mexico, for all hours worked.
• Comply with the requirements of the agricultural job order.
• Pay the hourly adverse effect wage rates of $13.15 in 2021, $14.16 in 2022 and $14.91 in 2023.
• Comply with safety and health requirements for housing and transporting H-2A workers.
• Request a preoccupancy inspection of housing in a timely way.
• Comply with other applicable federal, state and local employment-related laws and regulations.

Back wages recovered:        $45,384

Civil money penalties:          $8,998

Workers affected:                  55, which includes 50 H-2A program workers and five other workers

Quote: “Our investigation found the Mt. Clifton Fruit Company denied dozens of agricultural workers, many of whom traveled to the U.S. at the company’s request, safe housing and transportation, and their legally earned wages,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Roberto Melendez in Richmond, Virginia. “In addition to recovering back wages, we assessed penalties for these deliberate violations.”

Background: Mt. Clifton Fruit Company LLC is an agricultural fixed-site employer who specializes in growing and harvesting a variety of apples which are sold retail, direct to consumers and to processors in the U.S.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. The department can speak with callers confidentially in more than 200 languages through the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Download the agency’s new Timesheet App for i-OS and Android devices – also available in Spanish – to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

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YUMA, AZ – A federal investigation into the pay practices of a Yuma sports bar and grill has recovered $114,996 in back wages and damages for 86 workers employed by three owners who learned that denying employees overtime wages — deliberately and knowingly — is a bad and costly wager.

Investigators with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found Wheezy’s Sports Bar & Grill, operated by Tres Sisters LLC and its owners Maria Stefanakos, Yianoula Stefanakos and Elene Stefanakos, paid the affected workers at straight-time rates and in cash for overtime hours worked in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The division also learned the employer failed to keep time or pay records of employees who worked over 40 hours in a workweek, or records of any cash payments made for overtime. 

“Wheezy’s Sports Bar & Grill in Yuma violated their employees’ fundamental rights to earn overtime wages for hours over 40 in a workweek,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Eric Murray in Phoenix, Arizona. “The U.S. Department of Labor’s efforts to protect workers’ rights can have costly consequences for employers who violate the law, especially when they do so deliberately.”

In addition to recovering $57,498 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages, the department assessed Tres Sisters LLC with $14,231 in civil money penalties for the willful nature of the violations.

In fiscal year 2022, the division recovered more than $27 million in back wages for over 22,500 people employed in the food service industry.

“Too often, our investigations in the restaurant industry find workers deprived of their fully earned wages, some by employers who misunderstand their legal obligations and in other cases, by unscrupulous employers who intentionally ignore the law,” Murray added.

Learn more about federal regulations governing the restaurant industry.

The FLSA requires that most employees in the U.S. be paid overtime at time and one-half their regular rate of pay for hours over 40 in a workweek. Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Employers and workers can call the division confidentially with questions, regardless of where they are from. The department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages through the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Download the agency’s new Timesheet App for iOS and Android devices – free and now available in Spanish – to track hours and pay.

HONOLULU – A federal court has required the owners and operators of two residential care facilities in Kaneohe to pay $287,279 in wages and liquidated damages to 23 caregivers after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation found the employers intentionally denied them overtime wages.

The court’s action follows a consent judgment the department obtained in the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii after its Wage and Hour Division investigation determined Hokulaki Senior Living LLC and Olalani Senior Care LLC and owners Myriam and Robert Tabaniag violated the Fair Labor Standards Act willfully by paying straight-time rates for all hours worked, including hours over 40 in a workweek.

In addition to paying $143,639 in overtime back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages owed to the affected employees who provide care services for older adults and people with disabilities at two Oahu facilities, the operators must pay the department $13,299 in civil money penalties for their willful violations.

“Just as people employed in the healthcare industry must meet standards for providing care, employers are obligated to comply with labor standards, including the requirement to pay overtime for hours over 40 in a workweek,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Terence Trotter in Honolulu. “Employers who fail to meet these responsibilities may suffer costly consequences, particularly when violations are intentional.”

The division’s Honolulu District Office conducted the investigation. Trial Attorney Kathryn A. Panaccione and Wage and Hour Counsel Andrew Schultz in the department’s Regional Office of the Solicitor litigated the case and secured the judgment.

“The U.S. Department of Labor will not tolerate labor abuses or wage theft in the residential care industry,” said Regional Solicitor Marc Pilotin in San Francisco. “This judgment should make clear that we will hold employers in this essential sector accountable for their illegal workplace exploitation and pay practices.”

Learn more about worker protections for care workers and the responsibility of employers to comply with federal minimum wage and overtime law.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Employers and workers can call the division confidentially with questions, regardless of where they are from. The department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages through the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Download the agency’s new Timesheet App for iOS and Android devices – free and now available in Spanish – to track hours and pay.

Case 1:23-cv-00162-DKW-RT

Employer name:                   AHG Services LLC 

Investigation site:                2225 Piedmont St.

                                                       Kenner, LA 70062                                               

Investigation findings: The investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has recovered $57,590 in back wages for five employees after its review of contracts on a federally funded construction project determined AHG Services failed to pay the correct prevailing wage. -The employer also did not provide bona fide fringe benefits sufficient to satisfy its health and welfare obligations.  AHG’s failures violated the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act and the Davis Bacon and Related Acts.

Back wages recovered:         $57,590 in back wages to five workers                    

Quote: “Employers on federally funded projects must pay people working on these projects as required by Davis Bacon prevailing wage standards, which means they must receive the wages and fringe benefits listed in the applicable wage determination,” said Wage Hour District Director Troy Mouton in New Orleans. “Employers are legally obligated to pay the proper wage for each classification of work performed on the contract, and that includes ensuring certain health and welfare credits claimed by the employer are legitimate.”

Background:  Learn more about the DBRA, the CWHSSA and other laws enforced by the division including a search tool if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. The department can speak with callers confidentially in more than 200 languages through the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Download the agency’s new Timesheet App, now available for android devices, to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

Learn more about Wage and Hour Division.

Employer name:              Sloan & Williams Winery LLC

Investigation site:           401 S. Main St.

                                                  Grapevine, TX 76051

Investigation findings: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found the employer violated federal law by retaining and paying tips out to ineligible employees as quarterly bonuses. By doing so, the employer invalidated their tip credit which led to minimum wage violations. Sloan & Williams Winery also misclassified salaried employees as exempt and did not include bonuses, commissions and tips paid to ineligible employees and managers in their regular rate of pay when calculating overtime.

The division also learned the employer allowed two minors, 14- and 15-years-old, to work illegally at times not permitted and for more hours in a work week than the law allows. The winery also failed to maintain accurate records of hours worked, payroll records and required information on all its employees. The division assessed $1,582 in penalties for child labor violations.

Back wages recovered:  $79,263 in owed wages and $79,263 in liquidated damages to 69 workers                                        

Quote: “By including ineligible employees who do not customarily and regularly receive tips, the tip pool was invalidated. In addition, Sloan & Williams Winery LLC failed to pay tipped employees, hourly employees and salary non-exempt employees their proper overtime wages,” explained Wage and Hour District Director Jesus A. Valdez in Dallas. “The department will pursue corrective action vigorously to ensure accountability, deter future violations, and prevent violators from gaining a competitive advantage.”