WILLOW GROVE, PA – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment ordering a Willow Grove home care agency that intentionally denied 433 employees full overtime wages to pay them more than $3.8 million in back wages and liquidated damages.

Obtained in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania after litigation by the department’s Office of the Solicitor in Philadelphia, the judgment requires TriMED HealthCare LLC and its owner, Beverly Jordan, to pay $1,930,761 in back wages, an equal amount in liquidated damages and a civil money penalty of $180,141 for the willful nature of its violations. The department originally filed its complaint on Sept. 2, 2020.

“This is a significant recovery of back wages and liquidated damages for people who typically work for low wages and often struggle to make ends meet,” said Principal Deputy Wage and Hour Administrator Jessica Looman. “Employers must understand that federal law requires them to respect workers’ rights to be paid all of their earned wages, and that we will investigate those who fail to meet their obligations.”

The litigation and judgment was prompted by an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division that found TriMED HealthCare and Jordan paid direct care employees a regular rate ranging from $7.25 to $14 per hour. To avoid the expense of paying employees proper overtime, the employers lowered their regular rates when employees worked over 40 hours in a workweek, and paid overtime compensation based on those rates. By lowering the rates, the employer concealed the fact that they paid all hours as straight time in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The division also determined the employers paid some administrative employees straight time when overtime pay was required, failed to pay direct care workers for travel time between client homes and did not keep records as required.

“Employers who intentionally disregard the law and fail to pay workers their hard-earned wages will find that we will use every tool available, including enforcement actions in federal court, to hold them accountable,” said Solicitor of Labor Seema Nanda.

The division’s Philadelphia District Office conducted the investigation. Senior Trial Attorney Brian Krier with the department’s Office of the Solicitor in Philadelphia filed the complaint and secured the judgment days before an imminent jury trial.

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.  

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

TriMED HealthCare LLC provides home care services for those with disabilities or those requiring a companion and serves Bucks, Montgomery, Northampton, Delaware, Chester, Lehigh, Philadelphia and other surrounding counties in Pennsylvania.

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 or concerns 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 Timesheet App for free.

Employer:  SC1 Summit LLC – operating as Summit Adventure Park Charleston

Investigation site: 1964 Ashley River Road, Charleston, SC 29407

Investigation findings: U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigators found the employer – a children’s trampoline park – allowed 30 minor-aged employees to work outside of federally permitted work hours. Summit Adventure Park Charleston allowed 14- and 15-year-old workers to work more than 18 hours in a school week and after 7 p.m. while school was in session, both violations of the child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Civil Money Penalties Assessed: The agency assessed a $11,010 civil penalty to address the child labor violations.                                               

Quote: “Employers must familiarize themselves with the requirements that come with hiring minor employees. These laws exist to protect young workers and ensure their educational opportunities are not interfered with,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Jamie Benefiel in Columbia, South Carolina. “We encourage employers to access our Youthrules.gov website or contact the Wage and Hour Division to learn how to navigate working hours for minor-aged employees and uphold their obligations under the law when they choose to hire them.”

Background: 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, including information about protections for young workers on the department’s YouthRules! website. 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.

Employer:  Kandible Inc., operating as Indian Monsoon

Investigation site: 105 W. Morgan St., Durham, NC 27701

Investigation findings: U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigators found Indian Monsoon illegally kept tips left by customers for employees’ services. The employer also paid a flat salary to three non-exempt kitchen employees. By doing so, Indian Monsoon failed to pay the additional overtime premium pay for hours over 40 hours in a workweek. Both pay practices violate the Fair Labor Standards Act. Investigators also determined the employer failed to keep accurate records of the number of hours worked by the non-exempt employees.

Back Wages Recovered: $55,435 in back wages for seven workers.                                               

Quote: “Customers’ tips to restaurant staff belong to those who earned them, such as servers, bartenders and other frontline workers. Any attempt by an employer to keep these tips violates federal labor law,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Richard Blaylock in Raleigh, North Carolina. “The U.S. Department of Labor is determined to protect workers’ rights to be paid all their earnings, including tips, and overtime as required. We encourage both employees and employers to contact us with their questions.”

Background: Employers can contact the Wage and Hour Division at its toll-free number, 1-866-4-US-WAGE. The division also offers numerous online resources for employers, such as a fact sheet on Fair Labor Standards Act wage laws overtime requirements. Workers who feel they may not be getting the wages they earned may contact a Wage and Hour Division representative in their state through a list and interactive online map on the agency’s website. Workers and employers alike can help ensure hours worked and pay are accurate by downloading the department’s Android Timesheet App for free.

Learn more about Wage and Hour Division.

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LOS ANGELES – The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $1,651,550 in back wages and liquidated damages from the owner of seven Los Angeles restaurants who denied 83 workers overtime wages and kept false pay records in an attempt to hide the wage theft.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division found Prapai Boonyindee – owner of six establishments operating as Ocha Classic restaurant and one operating as Vim restaurant – intentionally did not pay the affected workers overtime for hours over 40 in a workweek, and created false records showing they worked no overtime hours. Both actions violate the Fair Labor Standards Act.

“Wage theft is used by unscrupulous restaurant industry employers to increase their bottom lines at the expense of some of our nation’s lowest paid workers,” explained Jessica Looman, Principal Deputy Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division. “We work tirelessly to recover hard-earned wages owed to workers like these, and employers who disregard workers’ rights accountable for their illegal pay practices and their attempt to mislead our investigators.”

In addition to recovering $825,775 in overtime back wages and an equal amount in damages, the division assessed $62,167 in civil money penalties for the willful nature of Boonyindee’s violations.

The investigation covered the followed locations and affected workers:

In fiscal year 2021, the Wage and Hour Division recovered more than $34.7 million for more than 29,000 workers in the food service industry. In 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports near record numbers of job openings and workers in the accommodations and food services industry quitting their jobs. 

The Wage and Hour Division encourages workers with questions about their employers’ pay practices to contact them. Calls can be answered confidentially and in more than 200 languages by the division’s professionals.

The Wage and Hour Division also 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. Workers and employers with questions can contact the division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243), regardless of where they are from.

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

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Employer:    Jamison’s Ice Cream LLC, operating as Sawyer’s Ice Cream

Site:               1933 Lakeshore Road

Gilford, New Hampshire 03249

Findings:      Investigators with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found the Lakes Region ice cream and fried foods retailer failed to pay full overtime wages to 25 workers and failed to pay two employees for travel time who were tasked with transporting seasonal workers to and from work, leading to significant Fair Labor Standards Act violations. The division also determined that Sawyer’s Ice Cream violated federal child labor provisions by allowing five 14-year-old employees to work more hours than the law permits, and by permitting one 14-year-old to operate a meat slicer, considered a hazardous occupation for minors under federal law.

Back wages: The division’s investigation recovered $38,176 – $19,088 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages – for 26 workers for the wage violations. The department also levied a $6,160 civil money penalty for the child labor violations.

Quote:           “Overtime and child labor violations are too commonly found in food service industry investigations. Employers must understand there can be differences between wage and hour regulations under state and federal law,” said Wage and Hour District Director Steven McKinney in Manchester, New Hampshire. “We encourage employers, particularly those with seasonal businesses, to avoid potentially costly consequences by reviewing their pay practices and how they employ minor-aged workers to ensure they comply with federal law.

“We also urge workers and employers alike to contact our office with any questions they may have regarding their respective rights and responsibilities,” McKinney added.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division.

DALLAS – A federal investigation into child labor violations by franchisees of a Lindon, Utah-based franchise network of a fast-growing national chain of cookie bakeries found 11 operators in six states allowed young employees – many 14 and 15 years of age – to work more than the law permits or in hazardous or prohibited occupations. 

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found violations affecting 46 workers at Crumbl Cookies’ locations in California, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Tennessee, Utah and Washington. Violations ranged from employing some minor-aged employees to work longer and later than the time the law allows to assigning others to operate potentially dangerous ovens and machinery.

The division assessed $57,854 in penalties to resolve the child labor violations.

“Employers must ensure that part-time employment does not jeopardize the safety or education of young workers,” explained Wage and Hour Division Regional Administrator Betty Campbell in Dallas. “It is the responsibility of every employer who hires minor workers to understand child labor laws, and comply with them or potentially face costly consequences.”

The division completed child labor investigations at Crumbl locations as follows:

Whether school is in session or not, 14- and 15-year-old workers cannot work more than 8 hours per day or exceed 40 hours per workweek. In addition, employers must not allow these workers to work before 7:00 a.m. or after 7:00 p.m. on any day, except from June 1 through Labor Day, when nighttime work hours are extended to 9:00 p.m. All workers under the age of 18 are banned from occupations considered hazardous by federal law.

Founded in 2017, Crumbl Cookies is based in Lindon, Utah, and operates a network of franchised bakeries and dessert shops with more than 600 locations in 47 states.

In 2022, the Wage and Hour Division found more than 3,800 minors employed in violation of child labor laws, an increase of 37 percent over the previous year. Minors employed in violation of hazardous orders were up 26 percent in the same period, with a total of 688 minors found to be working in hazardous occupations.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division.

Employer:                                          B&R Tires Inc.

Investigation sites:                       15115 Whittram Ave.

                                                                  Fontana, CA 92335

Investigation findings:                      U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigators found B&R Tires Inc – a vehicle maintenance business that provides repair services and tire replacements – failed to pay employees for all hours worked, including time they spent putting on and removing work clothes, gear or equipment. The employer also failed to pay required overtime rates for hours over 40 in a workweek. The employer also failed to keep records of hours worked. These actions violated overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Back Wages Recovered:                   $72,167 in back wages for 11 employees

                                                                      $72,167 in damages for 11 employees

Penalties paid:                                       $6,787 in civil money penalties

Quote: “The U.S. Department of Labor is determined to make sure employers pay their workers their rightfully earned wages under the law,” said Wage and Hour Division Assistant District Director Rafael Valles in West Covina, California. “The department’s Wage and Hour Division is ready to help workers know their rights, no matter where they come from, and also assist employers understand their responsibilities.”

Background:  Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, and its search tool if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Download the agency’s new Timesheet App, now available for Android and iOS devices, to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

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NEW YORK – The operator of three northern New Jersey restaurants has learned that not cooperating with a federal investigation and ignoring several federal court orders can get you arrested.

Today, the U.S. Marshals Service arrested Samad Uddin – also known as Saman Khan – owner of Manhattan Halal Gyro King LLC, which has locations in Teaneck, Elmwood Park and Paterson, for their failure to provide the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division with information requested as part of a compliance investigation begun in November 2020.

“The arrest of Manhattan Halal Gyro King’s owner Samad Uddin shows that the U.S. Department of Labor will not tolerate an employer’s unwillingness to comply with federal investigators,” said Regional Solicitor Jeffrey Rogoff in New York. “The use of U.S. Marshals by a federal court also proves that we will use every available instrument to show employers are not above the law.”

An administrative subpoena was issued in December 2020, but the employer again did not supply documents and testimony under oath the division requested to determine if the employer’s pay practices complied with the Fair Labor Standards Act. In response, the department’s Office of the Solicitor completed the following actions in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey:

• Obtained a court order in May 2021, ordering the employer to comply with the administrative subpoena.
• Filed a motion asking the court to find Uddin in civil contempt and fine the employer for not complying.
• Obtained a court order in March 2022, that increased fines to $1,000 a day, sought payment of existing $63,000 fines and again demanded that Uddin comply with the administrative subpoena within one week of the order with a warning that arrest by federal authorities was possible.
• Asked the court to have the employer taken into custody and remain there until they complied with the subpoena and the March 2022 court order. On Dec. 12, 2022, the court approved the request.

“The Wage and Hour Division must have access to an employer’s records to ensure their business’ pay practices and other operations comply with regulations in the Fair Labor Standards Act,” said Wage and Hour Division Regional Administrator Mark Watson Jr. in Philadelphia. “Employers cannot avoid their legal responsibilities by refusing to cooperate with investigators and withholding records they request.”

Incorporated in 2018, Manhattan Halal Gyro King LLC is based in Wyckoff, and operates three restaurants in Bergen County, offering dine-in, delivery and catering services.

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 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).

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

Secretary of Labor v. Manhattan Halal Gyro King, LLC dba Manhattan Halal Gyro King and Samad Uddin aka Samad Khan

Civil Case No. 2:21-cv-9104

NEW ALBANY, OH – Federal investigators have recovered $88,822 in back wages and liquidated damages for 32 workers at a New Albany golf course and country club where the employer required tipped employees to share tips with managers and, by doing so, lost their ability to claim a tip credit under the law.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found New Era Golf Ohio NAL Inc., operator of the semi-private golf course and country club, created an invalid tip pool by including salaried managers. The employer then lost their ability to take a tip credit in weeks when managers received tips from the tip pool, making the golf course and club’s operator responsible for repaying tips to workers that were illegally diverted to managers.

Investigators also determined that the employer did not keep accurate pay records and made automatic deductions for lunch breaks even when workers were unable to take a break. These deductions led to the employer’s failure to pay employees minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime compensation for hours over 40 in workweek. These actions violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.

“When an employer claims a tip credit, employer-required or mandatory tip pools may only include employees who customarily and regularly receive tips, even when a salaried manager works as a server or bartender,” explained Wage and Hour District Director Matthew Utley in Columbus, Ohio. “Violations like these are common in the food service industry, and the Wage and Hour Division is determined to ensure employers pay workers their full wages and benefits.”

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 devices to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor and the IRS today renewed a memorandum of understanding and added a streamlined process for joint referrals and closer coordination to stop businesses from misclassifying workers and denying them their full wages, benefits and protections under the law.

The updated MOU will also help the department’s Wage and Hour Division share information and work in concert with the IRS to strengthen enforcement of federal and state laws that protect workers’ rights. 

“We are determined to identify and resolve labor violations by employers who benefit by misclassifying employees as independent contractors and deprive them of the protections of the labor standards laws we enforce,” said Principal Deputy Wage and Hour Administrator Jessica Looman. “Renewing our memorandum of understanding with the IRS strengthens our existing partnership by improving referral processes and information sharing to help us better serve the nation’s workers.” 

In 2011, the Wage and Hour division and the IRS first entered into a memorandum of understanding to enable both agencies to use their resources to promote employer compliance with obligations to pay employees and related employment taxes. Since then, the division and IRS have shared information when an investigation discovered that an employer had misclassified employees. By sharing information, the agencies reduce the illegal use of misclassification and the tax gap while improving compliance with federal labor laws. 

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including misclassification of independent contractors and a search tool for workers to use if they think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Workers can call the Wage and Hour Division confidentially with questions – regardless of where they are from – and the department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages.