BOSTON – With menacing weather and severe storms a danger in late summer and fall, the U.S. Department of Labor urges workers and employers who clear debris, repair homes or perform other types of disaster recovery to use its Wage and Hour Division’s online resources, including a new Natural Disaster Compliance Assistance Toolkit, to ensure they are familiar with federal laws governing wages, hours of work and pay practices.

Even when disaster strikes, worker protections apply. Employers must ensure they can maintain accurate records and pay wages as due. Workers are particularly vulnerable during times of crisis and the failure to comply with federal labor laws harms them and their families.

“The U.S. Department of Labor works tirelessly to ensure that workers who respond in times of crisis, to help communities recover from devastating storms, are paid all of their legally earned wages and benefits,” explained Wage and Hour Regional Administrator Mark Watson in Philadelphia. “Additionally, we stand ready to equip employers with the information and guidance they need to prevent violations, which are often costly.”

From October 2017 to June 2022, the department’s Wage and Hour Division conducted more than 900 investigations related to recovery from natural disasters. Those cases yielded more than $62 million in wages recovered for more than 45,000 workers. During that same time, the division hosted more than 1,200 outreach events for disaster recovery employers, employees and stakeholders, totaling more than 75,000 participants.

Following the devastation of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, the Wage and Hour Division’s Northeast Region conducted 230 investigations and recovered more than $50,000,000 in back wages for 32,000 employees engaged in recovery work in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

These investigations disclosed violations under several laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, including failures to pay minimum wage and overtime as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act, health and welfare fringe benefits as required by the McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act, prevailing wage rates as required by the Davis Bacon and Related Acts, and overtime compensation as required by the Contract Works Hours and Safety Standards Act.

The division is committed to strong enforcement of workplace protections for disaster recovery workers nationwide and is eager to collaborate with federal partners to offer presentations on Natural Disaster Preparedness Compliance in the Workplace. Please join us on Sept. 8, 2022, at 1 p.m. EDT for a panel conversation with federal agencies and worker advocates about efforts and resources available to support workers affected by disasters. Capacity is limited, so register early. Additionally, stakeholders may access information and resources on the Wage and Hour Division website and on social media.

If you are a storm recovery worker who thinks you may be owed wages, you can search the Wage and Hour Division’s Workers Owed Wages website.

For more information about workers’ rights and other employee rights enforced by the division, contact the toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Workers can call the Wage and Hour Division confidentially with questions, and the department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages.

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

AKRON, OH – Federal wage investigators have recovered $67,294 in unpaid wages for 29 workers after their Akron employer, a tire equipment maker, allowed them to work for months without pay.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found McNeil and NRM Inc. failed to pay workers for two-and-one-half months in 2022. The Fair Labor Standards Act mandates that wages are due on the regular payday for the pay period covered.

“Workers cannot be expected to bear the burden of the employer’s financial issues which, in this case, left them wondering if or when they would be paid,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Matthew Utley in Columbus, Ohio. “Workers have a right to be paid on their regularly scheduled pay day so that they can meet their financial obligations and care for themselves and their families. Any worker not getting paid should contact the Wage and Hour Division immediately.”

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that about 510,000 job openings among durable goods manufacturers existed in June 2022, and about 166,000 workers quit their jobs in the sector. In the current climate, employers face significant competition to fill their positions as workers have more choices about their employment.

“Employers who fail to respect workers’ rights are likely to find it more difficult to retain and recruit the people they need to operate their businesses,” Utley explained. “Employers who treat workers with dignity and who comply with federal protections for workers will have a competitive advantage.”

McNeil and NRM Inc.’s Akron facility designs tire production equipment for automobile and truck tires that the company manufactures at its plant in Bucharest, Romania.

Workers who have not received their check or believe that are not being paid correctly can reach out to the Wage and Hour Division to file an online complaint or 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.

Employer:                                   Holiday Beach Rentals Inc.

Investigation site:                  17614 Ashley Drive

                                                          Panama City Beach, FL 32413

Investigation findings: U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigators found that – while the Panama City Beach vacation rental provider paid its property managers at least the minimum weekly salary – the property managers did not supervise any employees and, as a result, the employer failed to meet the requirements to claim an overtime exemption under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Without a valid exemption, Holiday Beach Rentals was required to pay them overtime. Investigators also found the employer failed to include earned non-discretionary bonuses into the regular rate when factoring an overtime rate. In addition, Holiday Beach rentals failed to maintain complete and accurate time and pay records, an FLSA recordkeeping violation.

Back Wages Recovered:       $44,271 in back wages for 25 workers.                                       

Quote: “Employers must ensure they classify their workers properly when it comes to salary and exemptions. Failing to do so can result in a costly lesson,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Wildalí De Jesús in Orlando, Florida. “Employers who fail to realize this and continue to pay workers less that they have earned can quickly find themselves struggling to maintain the workforce needed to stay in business.”

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

Learn more about Wage and Hour Division.

ATLANTA - An ongoing federal initiative to ensure that Southeast employers comply with federal laws regarding the employment of temporary nonimmigrant workers with H-2B guest visas has made significant progress in holding violators accountable for infringing on workers’ rights.

From October 2019 through March 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division in the Southeast has recovered more than $1 million in back wages denied to nearly 1,000 workers. The division also assessed more than $650,000 in civil money penalties and debarred four employers and labor contractors for their violations of the H-2B visa program.

The H-2B visa program allows U.S. employers to bring foreign workers to the United States to perform non-agricultural labor or services of a temporary nature— a one-time occurrence on a seasonal, a peak load or intermittent basis.

During this period, investigators conducted 73 H-2B investigations in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.  

“The H-2B visa program includes specific requirements employers must follow to participate. Our ongoing initiative will ensure the rights of all workers – both U.S. and visa workers – in the Southeast are protected, and make employers answer for their violations of the law,” said Wage and Hour Division Regional Administrator Juan Coria in Atlanta.

Among the H-2B violations found, investigators determined employers commonly:

• Failed to hire or rehire qualified U.S. workers.
• Offered more favorable working conditions and/or imposed restrictions or obligations to the H-2B workers that were not equally applied or offered to U.S. workers.
• Failed to pay offered wage during entire period of intended employment due to impermissible deductions or including all hours worked.
• Failed to pay for H-2B workers’ inbound and outbound travel expenses and subsistence.

The investigations also led the division to add four Southeast employers to the department’s list of employers debarred from participation in the H-2A or H-2B employment programs. The additions are Global Cleaning & Multi-Servicer LLC in Tallahassee, Florida; International Labor Management Corp. in Vass, North Carolina; and two Kentucky employers, Innovative Landscaping Inc. in Russell, and Paletco Inc. – operating as Journey Enterprises – in Louisville.

For more information about the labor provisions of the H-2B program and other laws that the division enforces, contact the 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 – 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 Timesheet App for free.

SALT LAKE CITY – An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $602,745, in overtime back wages for 127 employees of a Woods Cross tile installation company that denied them their full wages and benefits.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division found C&E Stone Masonry LLC paid its workers straight time for all hours worked. The employer claimed it incorrectly thought that if it paid its employees by piece work, they did not have to pay overtime. By doing so, C&E Stone paid straight time for all hours worked, including hours over 40 in a workweek when the overtime premium was required. The division also cited the employer for failing to maintain records of hours worked each workday and total hours worked each workweek, including for piece-work employees, as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act.

“Ignorance of the law is not a defense, especially when vulnerable workers are denied the wages they have rightfully earned,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Kevin Hunt in Salt Lake City. “Employers must be informed about labor laws, and must ensure that workers and their families who depend on their earnings and benefits are not harmed. Employers may contact the Wage and Hour Division with any questions about their obligations or worker’s rights.”

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

In fiscal year 2021, the division identified more than $36 million in back wages owed to about 21,000 construction industry workers. In its investigations, the division commonly finds violations related to employers failing to pay overtime when required, misclassifying workers as independent contractors and not paying them for time spent on work-related travel, or pre- and post-shift work.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects construction industry employment to grow at a rate of 6 percent by 2030, with a gain of approximately 400,000 jobs. Employers who ensure their workers are paid their rightful wages and benefits will be best positioned to retain and recruit skilled workers.

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 for Android devices to ensure hours and pay are accurate.

Lea en Español

Employer:                              Always Reliable Management Services Inc.

Investigation site:                  1815 W. 15th St.

                                                 Panama City, FL 32401

Investigation findings: U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigators found Always Reliable Management Services Inc. – a temporary staffing agency that provides housekeeping, front desk and maintenance workers to Panama City-area hotels – misclassified some employees as independent contractors. As a result, the employer paid the workers straight-time rates for all hours worked, failing to pay the additional half-time rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, a Fair Labor Standards Act violation.

Back Wages Recovered and Liquidated Damages: $80,268 in back wages and liquidated damages for 108 workers.                                            

Quote: “Misclassification of employees as independent contractors unlawfully limits employees’ earning potential, denies them payment of benefits and payroll withholding for taxes, and makes it harder for them to provide for themselves and their families. Employers must ensure they pay their workers their rightfully earned wages under the law,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Wildalí De Jesús in Orlando, Florida. “In an industry suffering from a nearly 7 percent monthly quit rate, employers who pay workers less that they have earned can quickly find themselves struggling to maintain the workforce needed to stay in business.”

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.

As of June 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the leisure and hospitality industry had an 8.5 percent job opening rate with more than 1,451,000 job openings nationwide and a 6.8 percent quit rate.

Learn more about Wage and Hour Division.

PITTSBURGH – A federal court has ordered a Pennsylvania mother and daughter to pay more than $2.4 million in overtime back wages and liquidated damages, after a three-day trial confirmed the pair used illegal pay practices to avoid paying full wages to 345 workers who provided daily living assistance and home healthcare in the Pittsburgh area.

On Aug. 5, 2022, Judge Christy Criswell Weigand of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania found Anna Zaydenberg, owner of Elder Resource Management Inc., operating as ComForCare Home Care, and her daughter Marsha Simonds, owner of Staff Source, liable for $1,242,146 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages. Both companies are also liable for the full amount. 

The ruling follows an investigation and litigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. The investigation found that Zaydenberg and Simonds set up Staff Source and then violated the Fair Labor Standards Act when they redirected workers’ overtime hours to the staffing company’s pay records to avoid paying overtime.

The division determined that while ComForCare hired the workers and they worked only for the company’s clients, the workers received two separate checks from ComForCare and Staff Source. Investigators discovered that ComForCare staff handled payroll for both companies and manipulated the payrolls repeatedly so that each check showed less than 40 hours a week and often the company paid no overtime, even when employees worked 50, 60 or more hours some weeks.

Following the probe, the department’s Office of the Regional Solicitor filed a federal lawsuit against Zaydenberg, Simonds and their companies. The court ruled the workers were jointly employed and both companies owed them overtime.  

In addition to back wages and damages, the division assessed $434,268 in civil money penalties given the willful nature of the employers’ FLSA violations. 

“While ComForCare workers delivered essential round-the-clock, daily living assistance to people in need, the companies went to great lengths to deny these workers their hard-earned overtime wages,” said Principal Deputy Wage and Hour Division Administrator Jessica Looman. “The U.S. Department of Labor works diligently to prevent employers like these from harming workers and their families. Their actions were illegal and unconscionable.” 

“The U.S. District Court in Pennsylvania’s finding sends an important message to employers in the home healthcare industry,” said Solicitor of Labor Seema Nanda. “Employers must pay workers overtime when the law requires and they cannot evade the law by trying to hide their violations. The Solicitor’s Office will continue to focus on this industry and show those who defy the law that there are costly consequences to such actions.”  

In fiscal year 2021, the division recovered more than $13.8 million for more than 17,000 healthcare industry workers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that there were more 1.9 million job openings in the healthcare and social assistance industry, and that more than 728,000 industry workers quit their jobs in June 2022 – all of which is forcing employers to compete hard to retain and recruit the people they need to operate. 

Elder Resource Management Inc. is an independently owned franchise of ComForCare Home Care, a nationwide network of more than 200 in-home healthcare companies. Elder Resource Management provides personal care, companionship, respite care, cleaning and meal preparation to residents in Allegheny County.   

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

HONOLULU – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation has recovered $28,455 in unpaid overtime wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages from a Big Island nursery and landscaping company after they failed to pay overtime wages to 37 employees.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division determined that Aikane Nursery & Landscaping – owned by brothers Brandon and Bradley Belmarez –  paid its employees straight time for overtime hours worked in some weeks. The Fair Labor Standards Act requires employees be paid time-and-one-half of their regular rate for hours worked over 40 in a workweek.

Division investigators also found Aikane Nursery & Landscaping failed to keep and maintain accurate payroll and time records of its employees’ hours of work and violated the child labor requirements of FLSA by allowing minors under the age of 16 years-old to work more hours per week than federal law allows.

In addition to paying a total of $56,910, in back wages and damages, the employer paid a civil monetary penalty of $10,000 for a child labor violation and reckless disregard of the act’s overtime requirements.

“The onus is on the employer to understand federal labor laws, to record all hours of work accurately, and to ensure employees receive all of the wages they have earned according to the law,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Terrence Trotter. “Anyone who employs minors must comply with child labor laws and ensure the safety and well-being of young workers.”

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

PITTSBURGH –  The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $65,640 in back wages and liquidated damages for three workers at two Pittsburgh-area gas station and convenience stores after its investigation found the employer had a history of shortchanging workers and violating federal overtime laws.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division found that Om Shiva Enterprise Inc. – a Monaca-based operator of Sunoco gas stations and owner Durlabhju Ukani – did not pay employees the overtime they were legally due when they worked between 57 and 112 hours in a week. Om Shiva failed to pay one-and-one-half times employees’ required rates of pay for hours over 40 in a workweek. The employer also failed to maintain records of employees’ work hours. The investigations covered locations in Freedom and Cranberry Township.

The latest action follows a Nov. 5, 2021, consent judgment entered in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania that required Om Shiva Enterprise Inc. and its owners to pay $281,029 in back wages and liquidated damages to two workers at a gas station and convenience store in Monaca. The judgment also orders them to comply with the Fair Labor Standards Act in the future.

During this prior investigation in 2021 and others in 2011, 2016 and 2020 at other locations they operate, Om Shiva Enterprise Inc. and Ukani were informed of the FLSA’s requirements, including the responsibility to pay overtime and maintain records of employees’ work hours.

“Despite these investigations and their knowledge of their responsibilities under the Fair Labor Standards Act, Om Shiva Enterprise Inc. and Durlabhju Ukani recklessly disregarded federal overtime and recordkeeping requirements,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director John DuMont in Pittsburgh. “These types of violations are common in the retail industry and can be prevented by complying with the law or contacting the Wage and Hour Division with questions to avoid costly consequences. There should be no doubt that we will use every tool at our disposal when employers chose to ignore federal labor laws.”

“When an employer like Om Shiva Enterprise Inc. and owner Durlabhju Ukani engage in wage theft, they deprive vulnerable workers of the wages they need to make ends meet. The U.S. Department of Labor has – and will continue – to actively pursue appropriate and active legal remedies to compel serial violators to adhere to the Fair Labor Standards Act and their obligation to pay their employees properly,” said Regional Solicitor Oscar L. Hampton III in Philadelphia.

In addition to the back wages and liquidated damages, the consent judgment entered in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania requires the defendants to pay $843 in civil money penalties to the Labor Department. It also prohibits them from future overtime and recordkeeping violations and soliciting or accepting payment of the wages and damages from the affected employees.

View the complaint and consent judgment.

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

INDIANAPOLIS – The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $92,326 in back wages and liquidated damages for 18 workers whose employer paid them a fixed weekly rate to stock shelves, serve customers at meat counters and operate cash registers at three LaCanasta Grocery stores in Indianapolis.

Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division found that, by paying the flat salary, the employer failed to ensure they paid workers the required federal hourly minimum wage of $7.25. Additionally, the employer failed to pay overtime for hours over 40 in a workweek, both violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The investigation determined LaCanasta owed $46,163 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages. In addition to paying the back wages and damages, LaCanasta will now require all employees to record their hours worked by clocking in and out on a tablet and will compensate them at time and one half their hourly rate for overtime hours worked.

“The wages recovered for these 18 workers makes a significant difference in their ability to support themselves and their families,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Patricia Lewis in Indianapolis. “Historically, small grocers employ young, low-wage and vulnerable workers who may not understand their rights to basic wage protections like overtime and minimum wage. Our efforts serve to educate workers, employers and the public on compliance with wage laws.”

In fiscal year 2021, the Wage and Hour Division’s Midwest initiative in the grocery industry recovered $172,124, in back wages for more than 200 workers, an average of about $823 per employee. Most commonly, the division found violations of overtime, minimum wage, and child labor standards.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projected that, in June 2022, 769,000 retail services workers left their jobs, and projected that 842,000 job openings existed. Learn more about FLSA rules for the retail industry.

For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the 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.