SEATTLE – While 77 care workers employed by Seattle-area adult family home providers worked long hours to ensure the well-being and daily needs of older adults and people with disabilities, a federal investigation has found their employers were shortchanging them $530,418 in wages.

Part of an ongoing compliance initiative by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, the investigations determined that Elena’s Home Care, Nashville Adult Family Home, Kirsten Adult Family Home, Woodhaven Adult Family Home, Goldenville Adult Family Home and AssureCare Adult Home LLC paid workers daily flat rates regardless of the number of hours they worked. By doing so, the employers paid some employees less than the federal minimum wage and denied overtime wages to those who worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. Their failures violate the Fair Labor Standards Act.

In total, the division’s investigations recovered $1,060,836 in back wages and liquidated damages for the affected workers and assessed $30,038 in civil money penalties.

Specifically, the division reached administrative settlements after finding the following:

• Elena’s Home Care, Nashville Adult Family Home, Kirsten Adult Family Home, Woodhaven Adult Family Home and Goldenville Adult Family Home failed to pay required overtime and did not keep required records. The division recovered $737,392 in back wages and liquidated damages for 43 employees and assessed $19,742 in penalties.  
• AssureCare Adult Home LLC, based in Lakewood, and owner Marcelina Macandog failed to pay the required overtime rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. They also incurred recordkeeping violations by failing to maintain a record of hours worked and by not calculating wages on a workweek basis. The division recovered $323,444 in back wages and liquidated damages for 34 employees at eight Washington locations and assessed $10,296 in civil penalties for the willful nature of the violations. In 2018, the division recovered $110,000 in back wages after a previous investigation of AssureCare.

“Care workers in these adult family homes provided a lifeline to their clients but their employers failed respect the dignity of their employees by paying them all of their hard-earned wages,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Thomas Silva in Seattle. “AssureCare, Elena Home Care, Nashville Adult Family Home, Kirsten Adult Family Home, Woodhaven Adult Family Home, and Goldenville Adult Family Home ignored federal laws that protect workers’ wages and benefits, and deliberately made it more difficult for their employees to care for themselves and their families.”

“Since 2021, we’ve found violations in 80 percent of the more than 1,600 investigations we’ve completed in the care industry. These probes have recovered more than $28.6 million in back wages and damages for 25,000 workers, and led to nearly $1.3 million in penalties for employers,” Silva said. “The U.S. Department of Labor is determined to holding industry employers who cheat their workers legally accountable and committed to recovery these workers the wages they’re owed.”

In fiscal year 2021, the division recovered $13.8 million in back wages for more than 17,000 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 home healthcare services increases, employment in a variety of healthcare sectors is projected to grow 16 percent from 2020 to 2030 – faster than the average for all occupations – adding about 2.6 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.

LOS ANGELES – The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $370,194 in back wages and liquidated damages from the owners of two restaurants in Los Angeles and Pasadena who illegally denied overtime wages to 54 workers, and attempted to hide their misdeeds.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division found Rober Yousef Babish, wife Ivette, and sons Julian and Joseph – owners of the two Millie’s Cafe locations – failed to pay overtime pay to employees for hours over 40 in a workweek, a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Investigators found that, in some cases, employees worked as many as 37 hours of overtime per week.

In an effort to mask their violations, the owners issued company checks and made cash payments. They also failed to keep records of all hours worked, including overtime hours, which led to recordkeeping violations.

“Wage theft is a serious violation, and restaurant industry workers are too often its victims,” explained Wage and Hour Assistant District Director Susan Bacon in Los Angeles. “These low-wage workers can least afford to have their pay shortchanged, especially by unscrupulous employers like the owners of these Millie’s Café restaurants. We are determined to recover all workers’ hard-earned wages and hold to account those who deny them their due.” 

In addition to recovering $185,097 in overtime back wages and an equal amount in damages, the division assessed $40,446 in civil money penalties for the willful nature of the employers’ violations.

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. 

“Today’s workers can choose to work for employers who value them, pay them full wages and respect their rights as workers,” Bacon 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 the people they need for their businesses to operate.”

In this case, investigators learned about the employer’s practices through the Employment Education and Outreach alliance (EMPLEO) which manages the multistate toll-free hotline 1-877-552-9832 to assist Spanish-speaking workers with workplace issues.

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, now available for Android and iOS devices, to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

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ST. PETERSBURG, FL – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation has found a St. Petersburg restaurant ran afoul of federal law, leading to the recovery of $28,162 in back wages for 36 employees, and changes to the employers’ pay practices. The employer illegally paid kitchen staff, dishwashers, and servers as independent contractors.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division determined that Mi Carreta Restaurant & Bakery Inc. violated several provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act when it:

• Paid hourly tipped workers and kitchen employees straight-time pay for hours over 40 in a workweek.
• Misclassified cooks, bakers, dishwashers, kitchen supervisor, servers, and helpers as independent contractors.
• Failed to keep time records as the law requires. The division found the employer’s payroll report failed to show required information including the number of hours worked and the issue date on a series of checks was incorrect. These practices violated federal recordkeeping requirements.

“When employees work more than 40 hours in a workweek, employers must pay overtime pay unless an exemption applies,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Nicolas Ratmiroff in Tampa, Florida. “Mi Carreta Restaurant & Bakery misclassified some employees as independent contractors and, by doing so, deprived workers of their full wages, benefits and rights, including the employer’s contribution to workers’ Social Security savings and Medicare taxes.”

Opened in 2014, Mi Carreta Restaurant & Bakery Inc. is a family owned Florida business that offers Colombian cuisine to dine-in and delivery customers.

Workers can call the Wage and Hour Division confidentially with questions and the department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages. For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the division, contact the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including misclassification of independent contractors and a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division.

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PHOENIX – The U.S. Department of Labor is seeking current and former employees of a Tempe construction contractor who may be owed a share of more than $2.6 million in overtime wages and damages recovered after a federal court approved a consent judgment in response to litigation and a long-standing investigation by the department.

On Nov. 17, 2022, the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona entered a consent judgment to resolve a complaint filed by the department against Valley Wide Plastering Construction Inc. and owners Jesse Guerrero, Rose Guerrero and J.R. Guerrero. In its action, the department alleged egregious violations of federal overtime, recordkeeping and anti-retaliation provisions. The employers have accepted the judgment and agreed to pay $1,312,360 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to affected employees.

 “Our immediate priority is ensuring that workers denied overtime pay receive the wages and damages they are owed,” said Jessica Looman, Principal Deputy Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division. “The Wage and Hour Division and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of the Solicitor worked tirelessly to hold Valley Wide Plastering and the Guerreros accountable. Our work, however, is not complete until workers receive their wages.”

Current and former workers who believe they were denied overtime wages should contact the department’s Wage and Hour Division in Phoenix immediately. The judgment specifies that Valley Wide Plastering may be subject to additional court actions and penalties if they fail to pay the amounts due, or demand or accept any of the funds from employees.

In May 2022, the court granted the department’s motion for civil contempt sanctions against Valley Wide Plastering, its owners and its vice president for violating a preliminary injunction and continuing to falsify time records, failing to maintain a reliable timekeeping system and listing false regular rates of pay on payroll records.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division Phoenix District Office conducted the investigation, and the department’s Regional Solicitor’s Office in San Francisco litigated the case.

“The U.S. Department of Labor will hold accountable employers that continue to break the law – even during litigation – despite knowing what they are doing is illegal,” said Solicitor of Labor Seema Nanda. “We will use every tool available to us, including injunctions and contempt actions, to enforce the law and stop wage theft.”

Current and former Valley Wide Plastering employees should call the division directly at 602-407-5323 to find out if they are owed back wages recovered as part of this judgment. The department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages through the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243).

Visit the agency’s website to 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.

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PANAMA CITY BEACH, FL – The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $503,053 in back wages and liquidated damages for 227 workers of a Panama City Beach hotel staffing agency that denied them full wages and benefits when the employer misclassified them as independent contractors.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division found that the misclassification by Touch of Grace Services LLC – which provides hotel workers to several Panama City Beach hotels – led the agency to pay the workers straight-time rates for all hours worked, including hours over 40 in a workweek. In doing so, the staffing agency did not pay the additional half-time rate for overtime as the Fair Labor Standards Act requires.

Investigators also determined that Touch of Grace failed to keep accurate records of the hours worked and correct wages paid to some employees.

“Federal labor law includes strict criteria for classifying workers as independent contractors. Misclassified workers are illegally denied their full pay, benefits and legal protections,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Wildalí De Jesús in Orlando, Florida. “We encourage employers to use the resources the Wage and Hour Division offers to understand proper pay practices and avoid the costly consequences of violations.”

Touch of Grace Services LLC provides hotel workers to the Hampton Inn, Springhill Suites, Sheraton Panama City Beach Golf & Spa Resort, and Beachside Resort in Panama City Beach.

Workers can call the Wage and Hour Division confidentially with questions and the department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages. For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the division, contact the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including misclassification of independent contractors and a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Workers and employers alike can help ensure hours worked and pay are accurate by downloading the department’s Android Timesheet App for free.

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Employers:                Fa Fa 318 LLC and Sanxi Inc., operators of Japan House restaurants

Investigation sites:   

1989 E. Main St., Suite A, Spartanburg, SC 29307

1703 John B. White Sr. Blvd., Suite C, Spartanburg, SC 29301

2252 Boiling Springs Road, Boiling Springs, SC 29316

11010 Asheville Highway, Inman, SC 29349

2795 Memorial Highway, Lake Lure, NC 28746

Investigation findings: U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigators found the employers illegally kept cash and credit card tips received by cashiers, and paid cooks a fixed salary for all hours worked, including for those over 40 in a workweek. By doing so, the employers violated federal laws governing tipped wages and overtime in the Fair Labor Standards Act. Japan House also failed to record the number of hours worked by some non-exempt employees, a recordkeeping violation.  

Back Wages Recovered: $80,212 in back wages for 52 workers

Quote: “Today’s workers have the ability to choose employers who pay full wages and respect workers’ rights. Food service industry employers who comply with labor laws and appreciate the dignity of work will have the greatest appeal to workers, whether they’re joining the workforce or looking for new job opportunities,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Jamie Benefiel in Columbia, South Carolina. “We encourage employers and employees to contact the Wage and Hour Division with any questions or concerns regarding pay practices.”

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.

Employers:                  

Point Pleasant Associates Inc., Owner Bidiawatie Singh and company officer Surjeet Singh                 

355 McKinley Ave. Edison, New Jersey 08050

Investigation sites:      

Spirit Gas Station, 14 South NY Ave., Absecon, New Jersey 08205                                      

Sun Petro Gas, 101 Absecon Blvd., Absecon, New Jersey 08201                             

Delta Gas, 734 W. White Horse Pike, Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey 08215

Investigation findings: The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey entered a consent judgment on Oct. 5, 2022, ordering the employers to pay back wages as well as liquidated and punitive damages to six workers, in response to a complaint filed by the U.S. Department of Labor. The department’s action follows an investigation by its Wage and Hour Division that found the operators of three full-service gas stations in New Jersey – who sometimes required attendants to work 12-hour days, seven days a week – failed to pay the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour and overtime rates for hours over 40 in a workweek. Division investigators also determined the employers directed employees to sign false statements submitted to the division in an attempt to disguise their unlawful pay practices. These actions violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Back wages/damages recovered:    

$107,149 in back wages

$107,149 in liquidated damages

$12,000 in punitive damages

Workers Affected:                            Six

Penalties paid:                                   $3,702 in civil money penalties

Quote: “Our investigations show that the pay practices of New Jersey’s gas station industry employers all too commonly shortchange workers and violate federal law,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Charlene Rachor in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. “This judgment secures hard-earned wages for gas station workers who labor long hours mostly outdoors trying to support themselves and their families.”  

Background:  Operating in one of the few states that prohibit motorists from pumping gas, the New Jersey’s gas station industry depends on workers employed as full-service attendants to operate pumps and provide other services. 

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, 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 – regardless of where they are from – 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.

INDIANOLA, MS – In an ongoing series of investigations into allegations of wage theft and illegal displacement of U.S. workers by Mississippi Delta agricultural employers in the H-2A temporary guest worker program, the U.S. Department of Labor identified several violations by 11 employers.

In 11 reviews completed by the department’s Wage and Hour Division, investigators found that employers failed to pay the required rate of pay for U.S. workers in corresponding employment; did not disclose all conditions of employment and did not provide accurate anticipated hours of work and bonus opportunities; made illegal pay deductions and failed to reimburse travel-related expenses as required; and did not comply with federal recordkeeping requirements, all violations of the H-2A program requirements.

The division recovered $134,532 in wages for 45 workers and assessed $122,610 in civil money penalties. These investigations are part of a larger effort and are a department priority.

“The allegations made by Mississippi Delta farmworkers are alarming,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Audrey Hall in Jackson, Mississippi. “The outcome of these investigations confirms that employers denied many farmworkers their lawful wages and, in some cases, violated the rights of U.S. workers by giving temporary guest workers preferential treatment.”

The employers included in these 11 investigations are Clark & Co. in Shelby, Egremont Baconia Farms in Cary, White Farms AJV in Marks, Van Buren Farms II in Belzoni, Bulldog Farms LLC in Tutwiler, Custom Ag Services LLC in Isola, Bruton Farms Partnership in Anguilla, Durst Farms and Carter Plantation LTD, both in Rolling Fork, Harris Russel Farm in Moorhead, and Murrell Farms in Avon.

The division found prior violations in the Delta’s agricultural industry. In 2021, the division found H-2A violations at six fish farms in the Mississippi Delta  and recovered more than $102,000 for more than 120 workers. Since 2020, H-2A investigations recovered more than $700,000 in wages for more than 500 Mississippi workers and led to assessments of $200,000 in penalties for employers.

In June 2022, U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh visited the region and heard from a group of Black Delta farmworkers who alleged their employers violated federal law by doing the following:

• Paid them less than  South African workers employed under the H-2A program.
• Tasked U.S. workers with training the H-2A workers who, in some cases, later replaced them.
• Denied Black farmworkers access to employer-provided indoor toilets – leaving them to relieve themselves outdoors – while allowing South African H-2A workers to use the indoor toilets.

“The Wage and Hour Division is determined to protect the rights of workers of color and others who have been historically underserved, marginalized and faced with persistent poverty and inequality,” said Regional Administrator Juan Coria in Atlanta. “For the first time in 25 years, we have a permanent presence in the Delta with investigators stationed in Greenwood and Clarksdale focused on helping protect workers’ rights and holding employers who violate federal law accountable.”

Across the U.S., violations of H-2A regulations and recovery of back wages have increased significantly in the past five years. Southeast employers currently host the largest number of H-2A workers in the nation.

In addition to the Wage and Hour Division, the expanded agriculture enforcement in the Delta region is a collaborative effort with federal experts from the department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Employment and Training Administration and Office of the Solicitor; as well as with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and regional stakeholders, such as the Mississippi Center for Justice and the NAACP.

For more information about workers’ rights enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact its toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Workers can call the division confidentially with questions and the division 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.

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Employer name:                     Heaven on Earth Network Inc.

Investigation site:                 3200 Second Ave.

                                                         Lake Charles, LA 70601

Investigation findings: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found Heaven on Earth Network paid 87 workers straight time when overtime pay was owed. The employer paid the required time-and-a-half overtime on the first 10 hours worked over 80 in a pay period instead of over 40 per workweek as the law requires. Heaven on Earth blamed the error on its accounting software’s default settings, and told investigators they corrected the error to make sure they pay proper overtime in the future. Additionally, the agency assessed $26,030 in penalties, which the employer paid, because the violations cited in this investigation were repeat violations of the FLSA.

Back wages recovered:        $81,162 in overtime back wages

                                                            $81,162 in liquidated damages

Civil Money Penalties:           $26,030 in penalties

Quote: “Workers who perform home care services spend long hours away from home and deserve to be paid all of the wages they earn,” said Wage and Hour District Director Troy Mouton in New Orleans. “Companies that fail to pay workers what the law requires may owe back wages, liquidated damages and even civil money penalties. This case shows the costly and avoidable consequences of violating the law.”

LOUISVILLE, KY – Krispy Kreme Doughnut Corp. has agreed to pay $1,187,757 in back wages and liquidated damages to 516 workers to resolve overtime violations in multiple locations found as part of a U.S. Department of Labor investigation. On Nov. 7, 2022, the department filed a complaint listing the violations and a consent order defining the settlement in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division first opened an investigation at a Krispy Kreme location in Louisville, Kentucky, but soon determined violations found there were widespread and systemic. The division then expanded its probe to include all the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company’s 242 locations nationwide.

Investigators determined Krispy Kreme failed to include monthly bonuses in some employees’ regular rates of pay. By doing so, the employer paid overtime at lower rates than the Fair Labor Standards Act requires. As part of the court order, Krispy Kreme agreed to future compliance with the FLSA’s overtime provision.

“Overtime and minimum wage violations are common violations found in food service industry investigations,” explained Principal Deputy Wage and Hour Administrator Jessica Looman. “Employers who fail in their obligation to pay minimum wage and overtime wages as the law requires make it harder for workers and their families to make ends meet. The Wage and Hour Division works diligently to inform employers of their obligations and protect the workplace rights of food service workers.”

Established in 1937 and headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Krispy Kreme Doughnut Corp. employs approximately 9,200 workers nationwide. The company’s network of retail doughnut shops, partnerships with third-party retailers, ecommerce and delivery services operates in more than 30 countries.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including its search tool to learn if you are owed back wages collected by the division. For confidential compliance assistance, employees and employers can call the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243), regardless of where they are from. Help ensure hours worked and pay are accurate by downloading the department’s Android and iOS Timesheet App for free.