SHREVEPORT, LA – While security workers sometimes face daunting challenges on the job in return for a median national wage of just $15.13 per hour, 58 industry workers are closer to getting wages owed to them by their Shreveport employer thanks to an action brought by the U.S. Department of Labor.

In May 2023, the department obtained a consent judgment in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Shreveport Division, ordering Sentinel Security Group Inc. to pay $23,841 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to the affected employees.

The court’s action follows a 2021 lawsuit the department filed after the company refused to comply with the findings of the department’s Wage and Hour Division. Investigators determined Sentinel Security Group denied overtime to the affected employees by not combining hours employees worked at more than one location, in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime provision.

“Sentinel Security Group deprived 58 workers of their overtime pay by ignoring their responsibilities under federal law,” said Wage and Hour Division Regional Administrator Betty Campbell in Dallas. “The recovery of back wages and damages will help these employees support themselves and their families.”

The department also filed a separate action in administrative court and obtained consent findings that require the company to pay $7,317 in civil money penalties for Sentinel’s repeat violations.

“Compliance with the law is not optional. Employers cannot repeatedly disregard the law, and the U.S. Department of Labor will take legal action when employers like Sentinel Security Group refuse to pay employees their rightful wages,” explained Regional Solicitor of Labor John Rainwater in Dallas. “This case’s resolution shows employers that there can be costly consequences for defying the laws.”

In fiscal year 2022, the Wage and Hour Division recovered more than $3.9 million for more than 4,600 people employed in guard services after over 600 investigations nationwide.

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). The department can speak with callers confidentially in more than 200 languages, regardless of where they are from.

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.

SAN DIEGO – A federal investigation has recovered more than $169,000 in back wages and liquidated damages for 235 workers employed by a San Diego drywall contractor who illegally denied piece-rate and hourly workers overtime pay.

The recovery follows a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation that found Polvera Drywall Corp. — operating as Great Western Drywall — and two related companies, Empire Insulation and State Insulation, did not pay the affected workers overtime, as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act. Specifically, the employer told workers to record that they worked 40 hours per week when, in fact, many worked up to 60 hours per week.

“People working for piece-rate wages are especially vulnerable to wage theft,” said Wage and Hour Division Assistant District Director Emily Eckstein in San Diego. “Employers who wrongly believe they can abuse their employees’ rights to be paid all of their hard-earned wages will find the consequences for violating the law can be costly.”

In addition to the recovery of $84,796 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages, the department assessed the employer $23,701 in civil money penalties for reckless disregard of the law.

Since 1985, Great Western Drywall has served customers in the greater San Diego area. The company specializes in residential light-gauge metal framing and drywall installation for multi-family, hospitality and assisted living projects.

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 worked 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.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor announced today that it will offer online compliance seminars in September for contracting agencies, contractors, unions, workers and other stakeholders to provide information on recent updates to regulations governing employment practices for federally funded contracts.

On Aug. 8, 2023, the department’s Wage and Hour Division provided for public review the final rule, “Updating the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Regulations,” following the first comprehensive review of these regulations in nearly 40 years. Enacted in 1931, the DBRA requires that laborers and mechanics be paid prevailing wages and fringe benefits when they’re employed on federally funded contracts worth more than $2,000 for the construction, alteration or repair of public buildings and other public works.

These seminars will provide participants with an overview of recent DBRA changes and offer them an opportunity to ask for more information or to clarify their concerns. The seminars are part of the division’s ongoing effort to raise awareness of federal prevailing wage requirements among federal contractors and subcontractors and promote compliance.

“Prevailing wage laws ensure that people employed on federally funded construction projects across the nation are paid fair wages and benefits,” explained Principal Deputy Wage and Hour Administrator Jessica Looman. “With the historic investments being made in our nation’s infrastructure, these online Wage and Hour Division seminars will provide employers and others with information about compliance with regulations governing federal contracts.”

The seminars will begin at 1 p.m. EDT on Sept. 13 and 14, 2023. Attendance is free, but registration is required.

Updates in the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts final rule include the following:

• Returning to the definition of “prevailing wage” used from 1935 to 1983 to address the overuse of average rates, and ensure they better reflect actual wages paid to workers in local communities.
• Periodically updating certain non-collectively bargained and out-of-date prevailing wage rates.
• Recognizing the division’s broad authority to adopt state or local wage determinations as the federal prevailing wage where certain criteria are satisfied.
• Allowing wage determinations to include supplemental rates for key classifications when insufficient survey data exists to publish prevailing wage rates.
• Modernizing and clarifying the definitions of “building or work” and “site of the work.”
• Ensuring that DBRA labor standards’ requirements protect workers by operation of law.
• Strengthening enforcement, including debarment and new anti-retaliation provisions.

For more information on the Davis-Bacon Act, the Service Contract Act and other federal wage laws related to government contracts administered by the Wage and Hour Division, please call the division’s toll-free helpline at 1-866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division. 

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

Lea el comunicado en español.

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

Lea en Español

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.         

Lea en Español        

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.

Lea en Español

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.