GOSHEN, IN – At 18 locations across Indiana, a Goshen-based credit union failed to pay 34 mortgage loan advisors and mortgage loan originators the full overtime wages they were due.

An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found that Interra Credit Union failed to include certain bonuses and commissions into the calculations of overtime pay for the affected employees. In doing so, Interra violated the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The mortgage loan advisors and mortgage loan originators received a salary plus commissions. However, they did not meet the minimum salary levels and duty requirements to be excluded from the employer’s overtime pay obligation as executive, administrative, or professionally exempt employees under the FLSA. Additionally, many of the mortgage loan advisors and mortgage loan administrators did not earn enough in commissions over a representative period to be exempt from the overtime provisions of the FLSA.   

The employer paid $18,906 in overtime back wages and an equal amount of liquidated damages for the affected employees. The employer also agreed to change payroll practices and comply with overtime regulations in the future.

“Our investigation of Interra Credit Union found systemic violations of overtime regulations. Failure to include bonuses and commissions in the calculation of overtime pay and misapplication of the regulations that allow certain salaried employees to be excluded from overtime pay requirements are among the most common violations we find,” said Wage and Hour District Director Patricia Lewis in Indianapolis. “Employers must ensure they understand the law and apply it correctly to avoid shortchanging employees of their hard earned wages.” 

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 hours 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.

NEW KENSINGTON, PA – A federal court has approved a consent judgment ordering a New Kensington landscaping company and its owner to pay $150,000 in back wages and penalties after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation found the employer willfully denied overtime pay to its workers.

Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division determined that – from Jan. 11, 2018, to Dec. 31, 2020 – Shurina Brothers LLC and owner Christopher Shurina failed to pay employees time-and-a-half for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. The employer instead paid straight-time rates off the books for overtime hours, a Fair Labor Standards Act violation. Shurina Brothers also failed to record and maintain accurate daily and weekly records of total hours worked, hourly rate of pay for workweeks in which overtime was due and total premium pay for overtime.

Following litigation by the department’s Office of the Solicitor, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania in Pittsburgh ordered the company and its owner to pay a total of $61,124 in overtime back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to the affected workers. The court also ordered them to pay $27,751 in civil money penalties for their willful violations.

“Landscaping employees are often among the most vulnerable in the nation’s workforce,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director John DuMont in Pittsburgh. “Our investigation found Shurina Brothers LLC and owner Christopher Shurina shortchanged these workers of their rightful wages. In addition to harming their workers, the employer gained an unfair competitive advantage by ignoring their legal obligations.”

“The successful investigation and litigation should remind workers that we will defend their legal rights to be paid for all hours worked and take action against employers who disregard the law willfully,” said Adam Welsh, Counsel for Wage and Hour with the department’s Office of the Solicitor in Philadelphia.

In addition to requiring payment of the back wages, liquidated damages, penalties and interest, the consent judgement enjoins the defendants from future violations of the FLSA’s overtime and recordkeeping requirements.

Based in New Kensington, Shurina Brothers LLC provides residential and commercial landscaping services.

The division’s Pittsburgh District Office conducted the investigation and the department’s regional Office of the Solicitor in Philadelphia litigated the case.

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.

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.

UPPER DARBY, PA – A federal court has ordered an Upper Darby home healthcare agency to pay $4,544,872 in back wages and liquidated damages after U.S. Department of Labor investigators found that the employer misclassified some workers as independent contractors, which denied 503 home health aides their rightfully earned overtime wages.

Following litigation of the case by the department’s Office of the Solicitor, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania entered a consent judgment on March 4 that requires Successful Aging Care Net Inc. and its owner Innocent Onwubiko to pay $2,272,436 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to the affected workers. The court granted summary judgment to the department on several key issues previously, including finding Successful Aging and Onwubiko liable for overtime and recordkeeping violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Separate from the consent judgment, the employer – operating as Successful Aging – must also pay $152,439 in civil money penalties the department assessed for the willful nature of the violations

Investigators with Wage and Hour Division found that Successful Aging paid straight time instead of time-and-a-half to the misclassified aides for hours over 40 in a workweek. The employer also failed to pay overtime to other properly classified employees, both FLSA violations. Additionally, the employer failed to compensate workers for time spent traveling between locations where their clients resided and did not maintain records of their travel time. Following the investigation, the solicitor’s office filed the lawsuit against Successful Aging and Onwubiko.

“Every day, home healthcare workers provide essential services to people in need and their families. said Acting Wage and Hour Administrator Jessica Looman. “The Wage and Hour Division works tirelessly to protect the rights of these essential workers to receive the wages they’ve earned, and to hold employers accountable when those rights are violated.”

“Misclassifying workers and failing to pay overtime wages violates the law, and it hurts workers and their families, especially those who rely on hourly wages to make ends meet,” said Solicitor of Labor Seema Nanda. “The U.S. Department of Labor will use every tool available, including litigation, to prevent employers from depriving workers of their wages and from gaining an unfair competitive advantage over employers who abide by the law.”

In addition to the back wages, liquidated damages and civil money penalties, the court’s judgement prohibits the employer from future FLSA violations.

The consent judgment follows an investigation by the division’s Philadelphia District Office and litigation by the Regional Solicitor’s Office in Philadelphia.

Founded in 2003, Successful Aging Care Net Inc. provides in home, non-medical healthcare and daily living assistance for adults, and nurse aide training at its Successful Aging Career Institute.

Learn more about misclassification of employees as independent contractors.

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.

WALTERBORO, SC – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation found a Walterboro landscaping company failed to reimburse workers employed in the U.S. under the H-2B guest worker program for their travel costs and failed to pay wage rates as required.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division determined Palmetto State Forestry Services LLC violated H-2B rules and the Fair Labor Standards Act. Specifically, violations of the H-2B program occurred when the employer:

• Discriminated against U.S. workers by paying H-2B workers higher wage rates for supervisor positions and failing to advertise or offer the position to U.S. applicants.
• Failed to pay wages equal to or higher than the prevailing wage for federal, state or local minimum wage.
• Failed to pay H-2B workers for their travel costs from the country of origin to the jobsite.

Palmetto State Forestry Services LLC violated the FLSA when it failed to pay drivers for travel time to various job sites. By doing so, the employer incurred overtime violations when the additional hours exceeded 40 hours in the workweek. Palmetto also failed to keep an accurate record of hours worked.

The investigation led to the recovery of $13,516 in back wages for 31 workers. In addition, the employer paid a civil money penalty of $20,514 for the H-2B violations.

“The H-2B temporary guest worker program is intended to provide employers with workers needed to operate their businesses for a temporary time period when the workers are needed. However, the program requires that employers first advertise all available positions to U.S. workers, and once hired, workers must receive all their rightful legal wages,” said Wage and Hour Regional Administrator Juan Coria. “The Wage and Hour Division stands ready to help workers and employers understand the requirements of the H-2B program and other laws enforced by the agency.”

The department certified Palmetto State Forestry Services LLC to employ temporary non-agricultural workers under the H-2B visa program, which allows U.S. employers to temporarily hire nonimmigrants to perform nonagricultural labor or services.

For more information about laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact the division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Calls can be received confidentially in more than 200 languages. Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division online, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division.

Read this news release En Español.

COLUMBUS, OH– Home healthcare workers assist their clients with daily living tasks and even stay overnight at their homes to provide around-the-clock care. Despite their essential labor, these workers are sometimes denied all their rightful wages by their employer’s illegal pay practices, as federal investigators found in a recent labor investigation in Columbus.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division reviewed the pay practices of 1st Choice Family Services Inc. and found the employer failed to pay overtime to some workers paid on a salary basis. The employer paid “straight time” for hours over 8 in a day or 80 hours in a two-week pay period when, by law, healthcare workers should have been paid time and one-half their normal rate of pay. 1st Choice also failed to record overnight care providers’ sleep hours as hours worked, as required. These actions denied affected workers their full overtime wages and violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The division’s investigation led to the recovery of $603,882 for 119 workers employed by 1st Choice Family Services Inc. at its Columbus headquarters and at locations in Reynoldsburg and Findlay.

“Home healthcare workers provide vital services and perform basic living tasks for those unable to care for themselves. They help their clients and their families maintain their dignity in challenging circumstances,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Marcy Boldman in Des Moines, Iowa. “As industry employers struggle to find people to fill the jobs needed to remain competitive, they must take into account that retaining and recruiting workers is more difficult when employers fail to respect workers’ rights and pay them their full wages.”

From 2019 to 2021, Wage and Hour Division investigations recovered more than $22.7 million for Midwest healthcare workers because of violations of worker protections under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

To help employers understand common industry compliance issues, the Wage and Hour Division is hosting a virtual Midwest Care Givers Summit on March 23 from 9 to 11 a.m. CDT. Register to attend.  

In December 2021, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the 679,000 healthcare and social services workers left their positions. As the aging U.S. population grows 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 department’s essential workers, essential protections initiative focuses resources on educating essential care workers and their communities about their rights to minimum wage and overtime pay and how to file a complaint if they believe their rights have been violated. The initiative also targets misclassification of workers as independent contractors, an illegal practice that may deprive workers of legally earned wages, and other protections.

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.

SIOUX CITY, IA – Slaughterhouse workers spend long hours on their feet to process livestock and put beef, pork and other meats on the nation’s dinner tables – essential work that keeps Americans fed. For their labor, employers are legally required to ensure these workers are paid all their rightful wages.

A recent investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division at Seaboard Triumph Foods LLC pork processing facility in Sioux City found the employer failed to pay 413 employees for work completed before and after their shifts, such as set up, clean up and knife sharpening.

By failing to count and pay for this work, the employer – operating as STF – violated provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Division investigators determined that the employer failed to pay the employees for all hours worked, and did not pay overtime at time and one-half their average hourly rate of pay when workers exceeded 40 hours in a work week. STF also failed to maintain accurate payroll records, as required.

The division recovered $331,807 in back wages for the affected workers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the nation’s slaughterhouses and meat packers employ about 78,000 people.

“Our nation’s meat processing facilities are often staffed by vulnerable workers, some with language barriers and many unaware of their federal wage law protections,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Marcy Boldman in Des Moines, Iowa. “The division priorities worker protections for this essential and vulnerable workforce. Wage and Hour Division is available to answer questions from employees and employers about wage laws and other compliance issues in over 200 languages, regardless of immigration status.”

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.

PENSACOLA, FL – A commercial cleaning contractor shortchanged 19 workers at a Federal Aviation Administration worksite in Pensacola by failing to combine hours worked at different job sites and not paying prevailing wages and benefits required on federally funded contracts, the U.S. Department of Labor has found.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division found Cole Industries Inc. – doing business as Service Master Professional Cleaning Service in Pensacola – violated the Fair Standards Labor Act by paying certain workers an hourly rate for hours worked on one job, then paying a flat rate regardless of the number of hours worked on a second job. By doing so, the employer failed to combine the hours from both jobs to determine the total number of hours worked and failed to pay the workers time-and-a-half the proper rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek, which led to overtime violations.

The employer also violated the McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act when they failed to pay employees the required prevailing wages and health and welfare benefits for work performed under a federal contract. The division also found Service Master violated the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act when they paid one worker a flat rate when they should have paid them an overtime rate for hours worked on the contract.

The division’s investigation led to the recovery of $39,806 in back wages and liquidated damages to 19 employees.

“Contractors and sub-contractors who hire workers to perform work on projects funded by federal contracts must follow specific laws when paying those workers,” said Wage and Hour District Director Wildalí De Jesús in Orlando, Florida. “When employers fail to pay proper prevailing wages on government contracts or don’t pay overtime as required, they violate the law, shortchange workers and gain an unfair advantage over law-abiding employers.”

The Wage and Hour Division will host Virtual Prevailing Wage Seminars on March 30, June 15 and September 14. Register to attend the seminars.

For more information about the McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act or 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. 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.

ORLANDO, FL – Employers cannot avoid paying overtime by simply putting employees on a salary, a costly lesson learned by a Florida equipment rental company after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division investigators determined that DeLand’s CJ Don’s Rental Group LLC and Ormond Beach’s Logsyd Group LLC – both operating as Southern Equipment Rental – paid flat salaries to certain employees, regardless of the number of hours they worked. By doing so, the employer violated overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act that require most employees to receive  additional half-time when they work more than 40 hours in a workweek. In addition, Southern Equipment Rental failed to maintain records of hours worked by employees paid a fixed salary.

The investigation led to the division’s recovery of $65,967 in back wages and liquidated damages for 13 workers at the DeLand location and $56,309 for nine workers at the Ormond Beach location.

“Paying employees a salary doesn’t exclude employers from their legal obligation to pay overtime wages. Most workers, especially blue-collar workers, are required to receive additional half-time pay when they work more than 40 hours in a workweek, whether they are paid by the hour, the piece or on a salary basis,” said Wage and Hour Division District Office Director Wildalí De Jesús in Orlando, Florida. “The Wage and Hour Division is available to help workers and employers understand their rights and responsibilities regarding the law. Violations like those found in this case are avoidable.”

The Wage and Hour Division provides multiple tools to help employers understand their responsibilities, and offers confidential compliance assistance to anyone with questions about how to comply with the law. Workers can call the division confidentially with questions – regardless of their immigration status – and the department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages.

For information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the division, contact the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243) or visit the agency’s website to 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.

PORTLAND, OR – The U.S. Department of Labor enforces laws that protect workers’ rights. It also holds unscrupulous employers who shortchange their workers accountable, as it has done on behalf of 118 workers at three Oregon restaurants after an investigation revealed wage theft and other violations.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division found the operators of KKOKI Korean BBQ restaurants in Portland, Eugene and Salem withheld tips earned by workers, allowed managers to take a portion workers’ tips and paid overtime wages only when workers exceeded 86 hours per pay period instead of after 40 hours per week as the Fair Labor Standards Act requires. The employer also failed to keep accurate employee records.

The investigation led to a total recovery of $169,728, representing $84,864 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages. In addition, the division assessed $30,199 in penalties for the willful nature of the employer’s violations.

“Restaurant industry workers are paid some of the country’s lowest wages, yet many put themselves at risk throughout the pandemic to serve their customers and help employers keep their businesses open,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Carrie Aguilar in Portland, Oregon. “Wage theft, like that found in this case, hurts these essential workers and their families. Business owners must understand that violations can limit their ability to recruit and retain the people who do these jobs. As we’ve seen, the pandemic has prompted many restaurant industry workers to find employment that better suits their needs and find jobs with employers who will pay them all the wages they have earned.”

In fiscal year 2021, the Wage and Hour Division conducted 4,237 investigations in the food service industry, recovering $34.7 million in back wages for more than 29,000 employees nationwide.

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.

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Employer name:                   Area Wide Protection Inc., doing business as Roadtek Traffic Solutions LLC                                                                                                               5874 N. Lee Highway, Suite 100                                                                                                                                                                                                         Fairfield, VA 24435

Investigation by:                   U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division                                                                                                                                                              Richmond District Office

Dates of violations:               Oct. 29, 2020, to April 30, 2021

Violations’ locations:           Fairfield, Verona, Richmond, Fredericksburg, Roanoke, Pulaski and Manassas, Virginia; Kinston and Sanford, North Carolina; and Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Investigation findings: Division investigators found Roadtek Traffic Solutions required employees to report to the office to conduct pre-and-post-shift tasks prior to starting their workday. However, Roadtek failed to pay employees for time spent performing pre-and-post-shift tasks, resulting in overtime violations. These employees were entitled to overtime wages at time-and-a-half for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. For these Fair Labor Standards Act violations, Roadtek paid $112,187 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 297 non-exempt employees in Virginia, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. In addition, the employer failed to maintain an accurate record of hours worked, as the law requires.

Quote: “Workers deserve to be paid all the wages earned for all the hours they work. When workers are required to complete any tasks before their shift begins, the workday begins at the start of those tasks and it continues through the completion of the last post-shift activity,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Roberto Melendez in Richmond, Virginia. “We encourage other employers to use this investigation’s outcome as an opportunity to review their pay practices to avoid similar violations.”

Company description: Based in North Canton, Ohio, Roadtek Traffic Solutions provides traffic control services including flagging operation, detour, lane closure, barricade services, and installation and removal of signs. 

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.