WESTBURY, NY - El Departamento de Trabajo de EE. UU. ha recuperado más de $333,000 en salarios atrasados y daños y perjuicios para 51 personas empleadas en una empresa de mantenimiento de Long Island que emitía cheques por separado para sus empleados para ocultar que la empresa no pagaba los salarios por horas extras cuando lo requería la ley.

Quienes investigaron para la División de Horas y Salarios del departamento determinaron que el personal trabajaba 80 horas por semana o más, pero, en general, Professional Building Maintenance Corp. y su propietario Brady Patruno les pagó tarifas planas por hora en vez de pagarles por las horas extras trabajadas por sobre las 40 en una semana laboral.

Específicamente, la empresa y Patruno pagaba al personal que trabajaba horas extras en un periodo de pago emitiendo más de un cheque, uno de la cuenta de nómina de pago de la empresa por las primeras 40 horas o menos de trabajo, y un segundo cheque de otra cuenta por las horas extras. Sin embargo, la empresa no pagó la tarifa por horas extras obligatoria por las horas trabajadas por sobre las 40 horas en una semana de trabajo. La empresa emitió cheques por horas extras con tarifas planas por hora ya sea mediante una cuenta bancaria empresarial secundaria y/o mediante una empresa fantasma que Professional Building Maintenance Corp. hizo pasar como subcontratista.

La oficina regional de procuración obtuvo una orden de búsqueda administrativa y ayudó a la división para obtener unas citaciones bancarias de terceros para obtener los registros de nómina de pago y canceló los cheques que revelaron la estafa al personal.

La investigación recuperó $166,702 en salarios atrasados y un monto equivalente en concepto de daños y perjuicios, y llevó al departamento a imponer $15,432 en multas civiles por la naturaleza deliberada de las violaciones según la Ley de Normas Justas de Trabajo.

"Las empresas que crean erróneamente que pueden desestimar la ley y negar a su personal los salarios que se han esforzado por ganar enfrentarán consecuencias considerables cuando se descubran sus acciones ilegales", dijo el director distrital de la División de Horas y Salarios, David An, en Westbury, Nueva York. "El personal que tenga preguntas sobre sus derechos y responsabilidades según la ley federal debería sentirse libre de contactar a la División de Horas y Salarios".

La FLSA requiere que la mayoría del personal en Estados Unidos reciba un pago de al menos el salario mínimo federal por todas las horas trabajadas y el pago de horas extras con una tarifa requerida no menor al tiempo y medio por todas las horas trabajadas que excedan las 40 en una semana laboral.

Obtenga más información sobre la División de Horas y Salarios, incluida una herramienta de búsqueda que puede utilizar si cree que la división le debe salarios atrasados. Las empresas y las personas empleadas pueden llamar a la división de forma confidencial para hacer preguntas sin importar de dónde provienen. El departamento puede hablar con quien llame de forma confidencial en más de 200 idiomas a través de la línea de ayuda gratuita de la agencia al 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Descargue la nueva Aplicación Timesheet de la agencia para dispositivos IOS y Android (también disponible en español) a fin de garantizar que las horas trabajadas y la remuneración sean exactas.

Lea el comunicado en ingles.

WESTBURY, NY – The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered more than $333,000 in back wages and liquidated damages for 51 employees of a Long Island maintenance company that issued separate checks to workers to mask the company’s failure to pay overtime wages when required by law.

Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division determined that employees worked as many as 80 hours per week or more but, typically, Professional Building Maintenance Corp. and owner Brady Patruno paid them straight-time hourly rates instead of paying overtime for hours over 40 in a workweek.

Specifically, the company and Patruno paid employees working overtime hours in a pay period by issuing more than one check, one from the company’s payroll account for the first 40 or fewer hours of work and a second check from another account for overtime hours. However, the employer, did not pay the required overtime rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. The company issued checks for overtime hours at straight-time hourly rates either from a second company bank account and/or from straw corporations that Professional Building Maintenance Corp. passed off as subcontractors.

The department’s Regional Office of the Solicitor obtained an administrative search warrant and assisted the division in obtaining third-party bank subpoenas to get the payroll records and canceled checks that revealed the employers’ scheme.

The investigation recovered $166,702 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages and led the department to assess $15,432 in civil money penalties because of the willful nature of the violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

“Employers who wrongly believe they can disregard the law and deprive workers of their hard-earned wages will face significant consequences when their illegal actions are discovered,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director David An in Westbury, New York. “Workers and employers with questions about their rights and responsibilities under federal law should feel free to contact the Wage and Hour Division.”

The FLSA requires that most employees in the U.S. be paid at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime pay at not less than time and one-half the required rate of pay for all 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 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 iOS and Android devices — also available in Spanish — to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

Lea el comunicado en español.

SANTA MARIA, CA – A federal investigation has found the owner and operator of five central California residential care homes denied overtime wages to 42 caregivers by requiring them to sign away their rights to overtime in exchange for an extra $1 per hour worked and creating a second payroll to hide the fraud.

Investigators from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division determined Santa Maria-based Bauer Residential Inc. and its president, Mihaela Bauer, took deliberate steps to avoid paying the overtime rate of time and one-half for hours over 40 in a workweek, as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act. They also learned Bauer made employees sign an agreement to forego the overtime rate and accept just $1 more per hour over their regular pay.

“Too often, the Wage and Hour Division finds employers of care workers taking advantage of people who provide essential care to those in need,” said Wage and Hour Division Assistant District Director Eduardo Huerta in Los Angeles. “Bauer Residential Inc.’s flagrant denial of overtime pay to 42 employees violated their rights to be paid fully and legally under federal law. An employer cannot force an employee to give up their legally protected wages in any manner, including by signing a form.”

Investigators also learned the employer failed to keep accurate records of employees’ hours worked and created separate timesheets for some employees, resulting in additional recordkeeping violations.

In total, the division recovered $545,655 in back wages and liquidated damages for the affected caregivers, whose payments in back wages and damages ranged from $124 to $22,477. The division also assessed — and Bauer Residential Inc. has paid — $24,402 in civil money penalties for the employer’s willful violations.

“Our investigation recovered hard-earned wages for dozens of workers who dedicate themselves to caring for others and held their employer to account for illegal pay practices,” Huerta added.

The investigation included all five of Bauer Residential Inc.’s locations in Santa Maria at 943 Sunrise Drive, 3842 Mira Loma Drive, 1910 Olive Drive and 572 Inger Drive; and Nipomo at 890 Prosperity Way. Founded in 2003, the company operates assisted living and adult residential care homes.

In fiscal year 2022, the division recovered $14.9 million in back wages for more than 22,000 workers across the nation in the healthcare industry, known for both low wages and high rates of violations. As the U.S. population ages and demand for healthcare services increases, employment in a variety of healthcare sectors is projected to grow 13 percent from 2021 to 2031 – faster than the average for all occupations – adding about 2 million new jobs. 

The division enforces the law regardless of a worker’s immigration status and can speak confidentially with callers in more than 200 languages. For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the division, contact its toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). 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.

Employer:     

Dyersburg Grecian Steakhouse Inc., operating as Grecian Steakhouse

2265 St. John Ave.

Dyersburg, TN 38024

Investigation findings: U.S. Department of Labor investigators found Grecian Steakhouse paid some employees straight-time rates for all hours worked. By doing so, the employer failed to pay the employees the time-and-a-half rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, a Fair Labor Standards Act violation. Grecian Steakhouse also paid one cook a weekly salary but failed to pay the worker an overtime premium for hours over 40 in a workweek. The employer also failed to keep records of employees’ hours worked, another FLSA violation.

Back wages and liquidated damages owed to workers:    $110,790 to 19 employees.

Quote: “When it comes to paying workers overtime, the law is very clear and leaves no excuse for an employer to shortchange workers of their lawfully earned wages,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Lisa Kelly in Nashville, Tennessee. “The division offers many resources online to explain employers’ obligations and workers’ rights. We also welcome calls or emails to our local offices to provide additional information.”

Background: In fiscal year 2022, the Wage and Hour Division recovered more than $27.1 million for more than 22,000 workers in the food service industry. 

Employers can contact the Wage and Hour Division at its toll-free number, 1-866-4-US-WAGE. Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division. Workers can call the Wage and Hour Division confidentially with questions – regardless of their immigration status – and the department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages. Workers and employers alike can help ensure hours worked and pay are accurate by downloading the department’s Android Timesheet App for free, which is available in English and Spanish.

WEST COVINA, CA – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation has recovered $78,472 in back wages and liquidated damages for 54 guards employed by a West Covina security company that denied them overtime pay illegally and then attempted to conceal the overtime hours by recording them falsely as training, bonuses, commissions and reimbursements.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division found Brapga Security Systems Inc. and owner Santos Parinas paid some employees straight-time rates for all hours worked, including those over 40 in a workweek. Federal law requires employers to pay employees time-and-one-half for overtime hours. The division also determined Parinas tried to evade the Fair Labor Standards Act’s provisions by masking overtime hours in the company’s payroll records, which led to additional recordkeeping violations.

“The U.S. Department of Labor will combat wage theft of all forms, including when an employer such as Brapga Security Systems manipulates time records to avoid paying overtime wages,” said Wage and Hour Division Assistant District Director Gayane Aleksanian in West Covina, California. “Federal law requires employers to pay workers their fully earned wages, including overtime, or face potentially costly consequences for violations and penalties for those who try to hide their theft.”

In addition to the recovery of back wages and damages, the division assessed the employer with $15,790 in penalties for the willful nature of the violations.

Based in West Covina, Brapga Security Systems Inc. is a privately owned provider of security services serving clients in Southern California.

Workers and employers with questions can contact the Wage and Hour Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243), regardless of where they are from. The division protects workers against retaliation and has regulations that prohibit retaliation, harassment, intimidation or adverse actions against employees that assert their worker rights. 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 and how to file an online complaint. 

Download the agency’s Timesheet App for Android and Apple devices to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

PHILADELPHIA – A federal court has entered a consent judgment requiring a Philadelphia home care agency and its owner to pay more than $410,000 in back wages and liquidated damages to 55 employees after an investigation and litigation by the U.S. Department of Labor.

The action by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania follows an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division that determined Alma Conway Home Care LLC and its owner Sara Tucker paid some home care workers straight-time rates of pay for all hours worked — including for hours over 40 in a workweek — denying them the required overtime rates. The division also learned the company employed a scheme to manipulate wage rates.

Specifically, Alma Conway Home Care LLC lowered employees’ regular hourly rates when they worked overtime hours, which caused them to be paid less than their required overtime rates and made employee payroll records inaccurate.

After the employers refused to resolve their Fair Labor Standards Act violations by paying the back wages and damages due, the department’s Office of the Solicitor filed a complaint in November 2022. On March 29, 2023, the court entered a consent judgment that requires payment of $205,434 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to the affected workers. The judgment also requires the payment of $25,740 in civil money penalties for the intentional nature of the employers’ violations. The order also forbids the home care agency from future FLSA violations.

“Alma Conway Home Care employees provide essential services on which people in our community depend. These hardworking people deserve respect and to be paid all of their legally earned wages,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Jim Cain, in Philadelphia. “Our investigation found the employers disregarded the law willfully and used pay practices that harmed their own employees.”

The division’s Philadelphia District Office conducted the investigation. Trial Attorney Erik Unger with the department’s Office of the Solicitor in Philadelphia litigated the case and secured the judgment.

“The U.S. Department of Labor will hold employers who fail to comply willfully with the Fair Labor Standards Act legally accountable,” said Deputy Regional Solicitor Samantha Thomas. “The outcome of this investigation and litigation should send a clear signal to other home healthcare industry employers that we will not tolerate employees being shortchanged by illegal pay practices.”

In fiscal year 2022, the division recovered $14.9 million in back wages for more than 22,000 workers in the healthcare industry, where low wages and high rates of violations are common. As the U.S. population ages and demand for home healthcare services increases, employment in a variety of healthcare sectors is projected to grow 13 percent from 2021 to 2031 – faster than the average for all occupations – adding about 2 million new jobs.  

“Hardworking healthcare workers will choose to work for employers who value them, pay them full wages and respect their rights,” Cain added. “Employers who comply with labor law and appreciate the dignity of work will have a clear advantage when it comes to recruiting and retaining workers.”

As part of its ongoing education and enforcement initiative to improve home care industry compliance, the Wage and Hour Division will present a free webinar, “Worker Rights in the Homecare Industry” on May 4 from 3 - 4:30 p.m. EDT. While attendance is free, registration is necessary.

For more information about the FLSA and other laws the division enforces, contact its toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division.

Help ensure hours worked and pay are accurate by downloading the department’s Android and iOS Timesheet App for free.

Civil Action No. 2:22-cv-04569-WB

CHICAGO – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment in federal court requiring the operators of five pizza franchise locations in Illinois and Indiana to pay $250,000 in back wages and damages in its effort to recover unpaid overtime wages for 35 restaurant and delivery employees.

On April 19, 2023, Judge Lindsay C. Jenkins of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in Chicago ordered OM Matteson Pizza Inc., OM Richmond Pizza Inc., OM Plainfield Pizza Inc., OM Krat Pizza Inc., and OM Dyer Pizza Inc. — operating as Rosati’s ­in Bloomingdale, Matteson, Plainfield and Richmond, Illinois; and Dyer, Indiana — to pay the back wages and damages owed in three payments. The companies are co-owned by Kalpesh Patel and Ketan “Kevin” Limbachiya.

The court’s action follows an examination by the department’s Wage and Hour Division of the companies’ pay practices from May 1, 2019, through June 23, 2021. Investigators found the employers misclassified delivery drivers as independent contractors, even though store management controlled their hours and assigned tasks. They also determined the employers failed to pay some workers’ overtime wages at time and one-half their regular rate of pay for hours over 40 in a workweek, incorrectly categorized some management employees as exempt from overtime, and failed to maintain adequate pay records. These actions violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.

“A federal court has agreed with our finding that these Rosati’s franchisees must pay 35 employees fully for their hard work, and as the law requires,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Thomas Gauza in Chicago. “Employers who fail to understand wage laws that apply to individual employees may find there are costly consequences for not complying with the law. The Wage and Hour Division encourages workers to contact us if they believe their employer is denying them their fully earned wages.”

The department’s Quick Service Restaurants Compliance Assistance Toolkit explains wage laws for the industry.

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). 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 to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

Case: 1:22-cv-7092

FORT MYERS, FL – While a Fort Myers restaurant operator’s choice to deny 75 servers all of their hard-earned tips may not be an uncommon violation of federal law, the decision comes with familiar and costly consequences after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation.

Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division learned Ginza Fort Myers Inc. – operating as Ginza Japanese Restaurant – required servers to tip sushi chefs, owners and managers based on the servers’ total sales. The employer’s illegal actions made their tip pool invalid under federal law.

The division also found the employers could not account for $22,000 in tips they withheld and had no records to prove those tips were paid to servers or any other employee. The employer also failed to pay a regular rate and overtime to dual-occupation workers who completed separate job roles. All of these actions violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.

As a result of its investigation, the division recovered $262,322 in back wages and liquidated damages for the affected workers.

“Tips are the property of the employees who earn them. No employer has the right to keep any tips unless they are given directly to the manager who directly serves a customer,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Nicolas Ratmiroff in Tampa, Florida. “This case shows that when an employer handles tip pools improperly, they may no longer apply a tip credit which can lead to an employer owing employees significant back wages and damages.”

Ginza Fort Myers Inc. is a sushi and hibachi restaurant that opened in 2017 in Fort Myers.

Wage and Hour Division investigators recovered more than $27 million for more than 22,500 workers in the food service industry in fiscal year 2022. 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. Workers can call the Wage and Hour Division confidentially with questions – regardless of their immigration status – and the department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages.

Help ensure hours worked and pay are accurate by downloading the department’s Android and iOS Timesheet App for free, also available in Spanish.

Employer:   CSI Catalano’s Nurses Registry Inc., operating as CSI

Investigation site: 3801 Bee Ridge Road,  Sarasota, FL 34233

Investigation findings: Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division found the Florida nurse registry staffing service misclassified caregivers as independent contractors and paid them straight-time rates for all hours worked. By doing so, the employer failed to pay the employees a time-and-a-half premium for hours over 40 hours in a workweek, a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. A consent judgment entered in the Northern District of Florida by the Office of the Solicitor resolved the case after a period of litigation, with the employer also agreeing with a court order not to commit future violations.

Back Wages Recovered: $260,221 for 61 workers.                            

Quote: “All workers deserve the wages they legally earned, including those who provide essential care to people in our communities,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Nicolas Ratmiroff in Tampa, Florida. “Employers should contact the Wage and Hour Division to determine if a worker is an employee or an independent contractor. In this case, the employer should have followed federal law in making their determination. When federal and state regulations conflict, employers must abide by the more restrictive of the regulations.”

Background: The Sarasota-based CSI Catalano’s Nurses Registry Inc. is part of Caregiver Services Inc. in Miami, and one of 14 nurse registries in 47 Florida counties. The company provides staffing that includes registered nurses, certified nursing assistants, home health aides and companions.

The FLSA requires that most employees in the U.S. be paid at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime pay at not less than time and one-half the regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek. Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division and workers’ rights, 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 their immigration status. 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 android devices, available in English and Spanish, to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

OMAHA, NE – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation has recovered $272,163 in overtime back wages for 133 workers employed by an Omaha-based operator of six bars, restaurants and live music venues that used a tip pool illegally, and denied servers and salaried employees correct overtime wages.

Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division found Maven Act II LLC violated provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act at six of its locations when they did the following:

• Included salaried managers when it instituted tip pools for servers. By doing so, the employer lost their ability to take a tip credit in workweeks when managers shared servers’ tips.
• Paid some servers time and one-half their cash wage in periods when the employer claimed a tip credit. The employer should have paid time and one-half the employees’ regular hourly rate.
• Classified workers as exempt from overtime but did not meet the necessary requirements. By doing so, the employer failed to pay time and one-half their pay rate for hours over 40 in a workweek.
• Did not maintain time records from May 2020 until January 2021.

The division also assessed $6,930 in civil money penalties for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

“Servers and bartenders are often among our nation’s lowest paid workers. Making a living by depending on busy shifts and customers’ whims is hard enough, without being forced to overcome employers who fail to pay them as the law requires,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Marietta Taylor in Des Moines, Iowa. “Our investigation found Maven Act II LLC misused its tip pool and denied dozens of employees all of their hard-earned wages by violating federal overtime laws.”

The division identified violations at the following Omaha locations, and recovered wages for employees as follows:

In addition to the six establishments included in the division’s investigation, Maven Act II LLC also operates Maven Bar, a mobile bar service, and Maven Ice, a commercial craft ice company.

The department’s Quick Service Restaurants Compliance Assistance Toolkit explains wage laws for the industry.

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). 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 Apple devices to ensure hours and pay are accurate.