PITTSBURGH – A federal court in Pittsburgh has entered a consent judgment in which a company that provided land services for the oil and gas industry admitted liability for more than $40 million in back wages and damages after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation found Fair Labor Standards Act violations.

After more than six years of contested litigation, Holland Acquisition Inc. – which operated as Holland Services in Washington, Pennsylvania – conceded liability in a consent judgment approved today by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. The court affirmed the company’s liability for $43,276,638 in back wages and liquidated damages owed to 700 workers.

Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division found that from Aug. 20, 2012 to April 21, 2019, Holland Services improperly classified abstractors, title examiners and landmen as independent contractors. The employer also failed to pay overtime, as required by law, when employees worked more than 40 hours in a week. The company also did not keep accurate records of all daily and weekly hours employees worked, and instead only recorded the number of days worked per week. Holland’s actions violated the FLSA’s overtime and recordkeeping requirements.

“When employers misclassify employees as independent contractors and fail to pay workers their hard-earned wages, we must hold them accountable under the law,” said Wage and Hour Acting Administrator Jessica Looman. “We encourage employers to review their pay practices to ensure they comply with federal law, and to contact the Department of Labor for the information needed to avoid violations.”

“We hope that other employers in this industry use the outcome of this investigation and court action as an opportunity to review their own pay practices to ensure they comply with the law. Failure to do so, as we saw in this case, comes at a significant cost,” said Regional Solicitor Oscar L. Hampton III in Philadelphia. “The Department of Labor is committed to enforcing the law and protecting workers no matter how long it takes.”

View the complaint and consent judgment. 

Headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, Holland Services provided abstract/title examinations for the oil and gas industry. The company has filed for bankruptcy. The department is continuing to litigate the case against the company’s former Chief Operating Officer Bryan Gaudin.

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

WESTWOOD, NJ – Owners of two Westwood car wash establishments and an oil change shop routinely shortchanged employees who worked long hours doing physically demanding work. As a result of a federal investigation and recent court order, the firm must pay $325,000 in back wages and liquidated damages for failing to pay the minimum wage and overtime. Some employees who worked as many as 70 hours in a workweek received only straight time for all the hours they worked.

Investigators from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found that Nanard Enterprises Inc., Oilube R We Inc., and owners Bernard and Nancy Torraco and General Manager Anton Musto failed to pay the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour and did not pay overtime to employees who worked over 40 hours in a workweek, in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The department’s Regional Solicitor in New York began litigation when the firm would not agree to a resolution.

In response to the department’s complaint, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey in Newark entered a consent judgment requiring Westwood Car Wash, Old Hook Car Wash and 10-Minute Oil Lube to pay $162,500 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 45 car wash and oil change technicians, and cashiers. In addition to paying back wages and liquidated damages, the employers have agreed to an injunction against future violations.

“When workers in low-wage industries such as these are illegally denied minimum wages and overtime pay, it is difficult for them to make ends meet and care for their families,” said Wage and Hour Director Paula Ruffin in Mountainside. “The Wage and Hour Division will hold employers accountable when they fail to comply with the law and will take robust action when workers’ rights are being violated.”

“This consent judgment ensures these workers are paid fairly and receive all of their hard-earned wages,” said Regional Solicitor of Labor Jeffrey S. Rogoff in New York. “Our litigation and the court’s action sends a clear signal to employers that shortchanging workers and violating the law to gain an unfair competitive advantage will not be tolerated.”

Trial attorney Rosemary Almonte litigated the case for the department’s Regional Office of the Solicitor in New York.

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

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.

DANVILLE, VA – Fifty-three personal care aides and certified nursing assistants of a Danville home healthcare agency worked overtime hours to provide clients with compassionate care and a better quality of life, but their employer failed to pay them $99,427 for the additional time worked – overtime back wages the U.S. Department of Labor has recovered for them.

A recent investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division found Angel Wings Home Health Inc. violated the overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The division determined that Angel Wings failed to pay the personal care aides and nursing assistants time-and-a-half when they worked over 40 in a workweek, as the FLSA requires. The employer also failed to maintain accurate records of total weekly hours worked, as required by federal law.

“Overtime and other wage violations are all too common among home healthcare workers. Employers’ failure to abide by the law and pay wages fairly harms these essential workers who serve their communities by providing critical care services during a national health care crisis,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Roberto Melendez in Richmond. “We will hold employers accountable when they fail to uphold their legal obligations.”

Angel Wings Home Health provides personal and respite care, feeding/meal preparation, household duties, laundry, errands, and companionship services between the Danville and South Boston areas.

The Wage and Hour Division provides employers with compliance assistance tools in a variety of languages, including an interactive E-laws advisor and a complete library of free, downloadable workplace posters. In addition, the Division’s Community Outreach Resource Planning Specialists (CORPS) conduct ongoing outreach activities to educate stakeholders, including employers, employees, business and labor groups, and professional associations, among others, with accessible, easy-to-understand information about their rights and responsibilities.  To find your local Wage and Hour Office, please visit Wage & Hour Local Offices.

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.

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SACRAMENTO – Mientras que trabajadores de un restaurant al Norte de California trabajaban duro para satisfacer a los clientes y ayudar al negocio a seguir adelante durante la pandemia, su empleador intencionalmente no les pagaba los salarios requeridos por sobretiempo, lo que ha llegado a tener costosas consecuencias para los propietarios del negocio.  

Una investigación de la División de Horas y Salarios  del Departamento de Trabajo de EE.UU. encontró que Lido Bar & Grill, en Carmichael, no registró todas las horas que trabajaron sus empleados y tampoco les pago las horas extra tal y como requieren las leyes federales de trabajo. O bien pagaban a los cocineros un salario sin incluir las horas extra cuando trabajaban más de 40 horas a la semana o les pagaban esas horas extra en efectivo y en base a tarifas regulares por hora.

La investigación llevó a la división a recuperar $81,577 en salarios atrasados por sobretiempo y $81,577 en compensación por daños para siete trabajadores. La división también multó al empleador con $4,067 debido a la naturaleza intencional de las violaciones cometidas bajo la Ley de Normas Justas de Trabajo.

“Los trabajadores de restaurants provén servicios esenciales para el público y apoyan las economías locales. Pagar a trabajadores un salario no elimina a los empleadores su obligación del pago de horas extra cuando los empleados trabajan más de 40 horas a la semana”, dijo la directora distrital asistente de la Division de Horas y Salarios en Sacramento, California. “Las violaciones al pago por sobretiempo son muy comunes en el sector de restaurantes, y el Departamento de Trabajo de EE.UU. está comprometido a usar todas las herramientas disponibles – incluido el litigio en corte – contra empleadores que violan la ley intencionalmente, dañan a trabajadores y sus familias, y tratan de ganar una ventaja competitiva ilegal sobre sus competidores que cumplen las leyes”.

Los trabajadores pueden llamar confidencialmente a la División de Horas y Salarios con preguntas – sin importar su estatus migratorio – y el departamento puede hablar a los que llamen en más de 200 idiomas.

Para más información sobre la FLSA y otras leyes de cumplimiento de la división, contacte a la línea de ayuda gratuita al 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Sepa más sobre la División de Horas y Salarios, incluyendo una herramienta de búsqueda si piensa que se le deben salarios recuperados por la división.

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SACRAMENTO – While workers at a northern California restaurant worked hard to satisfy customers and keep the business operating throughout the pandemic, their employer intentionally failed to pay overtime wages when required, leading to costly consequences for the restaurant’s owner.

A U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation found Lido Bar & Grill, in Carmichael, failed to record all hours employees worked and failed to pay overtime as required by federal law. They either paid the cooks a salary with no overtime when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek or paid overtime hours in cash at straight-time rates.

The investigation led to the division’s recovery of $81,577 in overtime back wages and $81,577 in liquidated damages for seven workers. The division also assessed $4,067 in civil penalties against the employer to address the willful nature of their violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

“Restaurant workers provide essential services for the public and support their local economies. Paying workers a salary does not relieve employers of their overtime pay obligations when employees work more than 40 hours in a week,” said Wage and Hour Division Assistant District Director Patricia Canites in Sacramento, California. “Overtime pay violations are all too common in the restaurant industry, and the U.S. Department of Labor is committed to using all tools available – including litigation – against employers who violate the law willfully, hurt workers and their families, and take an unlawful advantage of their competitors that abide by the law.”

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 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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DALLAS – An employer learned a costly lesson about skirting federal overtime laws when it gave hollow management titles to overtime eligible employees and paid them salaries for all the hours they worked. Despite the fact that the work they do made them eligible for overtime, Top Golf USA Inc. failed to pay overtime when the employees worked more than 40 hours in a workweek, a U.S. Department of Labor investigation found.

A corporate-wide investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division found the Dallas-based company – which operates in 31 states as Topgolf – paid event sales managers and event sales consultants a salary plus commission with no overtime premium after 40 hours in a workweek, in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Division investigators determined the employees did not meet the supervisory requirements and were eligible for overtime. The investigation began with the discovery of violations at its Loudon, Virginia, location.

The division’s investigation led to recovery of $750,063 in back wages for 255 employees in 25 states.

“Employers cannot evade federal overtime requirements by simply giving an employee a manager’s title,” said Wage and Hour Southwest Regional Administrator Betty Campbell in Dallas. “This case should serve as a clear warning and prompt other employers to review their pay practices. Employers uncertain of their obligations should contact their local Wage and Hour District Office or visit our website for guidance on how to comply with federal law.”

Topgolf is part of Topgolf Entertainment Group, a sports and entertainment enterprise, with operations throughout the U.S., in the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Mexico and the United Arab Emirates.

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.

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.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a final rule that restores the department’s ability to assess civil money penalties against employers who take tips earned by their employees, regardless of whether those violations are repeated or willful. In addition, today’s rule modifies the department’s broader civil money penalties regulations addressing when a violation is willful, further aligning these regulations with applicable precedent and how the department litigates willfulness. The rule also allows managers and supervisors to contribute to valid tip pooling arrangements, without receiving tips from those pools.

“Workers who depend on tipped wages are every bit as entitled to expect to keep what they’ve earned as other workers,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh. “An employer who withholds workers’ tips in violation of the law deprives them of that security and, in some cases, leads to workers earning less than the federal minimum wage. This final rule helps us protect their earnings by strengthening tools to hold employers legally responsible for those violations.”

With this rule’s publication, the department withdraws the civil money penalties’ provisions in the 2020 Tip final rule that would have allowed the department to assess these penalties for violations only when employers kept employees’ tips and the department found their violations to be repeated or willful. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018 allows the department to impose civil money penalties to $1,100 when employers keep employees’ tips – in violation of the law – regardless of whether violations are repeated or willful.

The final rule also clarifies that – while managers and supervisors may not receive tips from mandatory tip pools or tip-sharing arrangements – managers or supervisors may contribute to mandatory tip pools or sharing arrangements. In addition, the rule clarifies that a manager or supervisor may keep tips only when the manager or supervisor receives tips from customers directly for service a manager or supervisor directly and “solely” provides.

“The final rule announced today strengthens protections for tipped workers – who are largely women, immigrants and people of color – and advances equity in the workplace,” said Wage and Hour Division Acting Administrator Jessica Looman. “Civil money penalties are an incentive for employers to comply with their legal responsibilities. When they do comply, essential workers benefit. When employers don’t comply, these penalties are a useful enforcement tool we can use to help achieve compliance.”

The Fair Labor Standards Act allows employers with tipped workers to pay as little as $2.13 per hour in direct wages, while taking a credit against the tips earned by the employee to make up the balance of the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.

For more information on protections for tipped workers and others under the FLSA, or learn more about the Wage and Hour Division. You may also call toll-free 1-866-4US-WAGE to speak directly and confidentially to a trained Wage and Hour Division professional. The division protects workers regardless of immigration status, and can communicate with workers in more than 200 languages.

WEST COVINA, CA – The U.S. Department of Labor has ordered a Colton car wash to pay 15 workers more than $62,000 in back wages and liquidated damages after federal investigators found their employer intentionally failed to pay them overtime, as the Fair Labor Standards Act requires.

Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division found Sparkling Clean Car Wash Inc. flouted its legal obligation to pay workers the overtime pay when they worked over 40 hours in a workweek and instead paid them straight-time rates, regardless of the number of hours worked. They also determined the employer failed to pay one worker up to $393 in minimum wages. The division assessed $8,715 in penalties to Sparking Clean for its willful disregard of the law. In addition, the division cited the employer for failing to maintain complete payroll records, another FLSA violation.

“Car wash industry workers are often low-wage earners and when employers fail to pay these workers for all the hours they work as required by the law, it can be difficult for the workers to attend to their basic needs” said Wage and Hour Division Assistant District Director Rafael Valles in West Covina, California. “The deliberate nature of this employer’s violations are unacceptable, and they have been held maximally accountable for shortchanging their workers.”

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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ORLANDO, FL – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation found an Orlando air conditioning and heating service company failed to pay workers the overtime wages they legally earned, in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division investigators found Mills Air Conditioning & Heating Inc. – operating as Mills Air Inc. – violated provisions of the FLSA when it failed to pay workers proper overtime when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. The violations occurred when the employer failed to include commission and incentive pay in the workers’ overtime pay rate. The division also determined that payroll records failed to accurately document overtime hours worked. Mills Air Inc. also failed to record hours worked for one employee paid on a salary basis. Both practices resulted in violations of the FLSA recordkeeping requirements.

The division’s investigation led to the recovery of $34,142 in back wages for 43 workers.

“Employers who pay production bonuses, incentives and commission must include those earnings in the weekly overtime computations,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Wildalí De Jesús in Orlando, Florida. “Wage and Hour Division’s mission, in part, is to ensure workers are paid correctly as outlined by federal laws. This case should encourage all employers to review their pay practices and contact the division with questions to avoid violations.”

Mills Air Inc. is located in Orlando and provides services across 18 cities in Central Florida including in Kissimmee, Oviedo and Longwood.

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.

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.

SAN ANTONIO – Since the pandemic’s start, pharmacy workers in our communities have served their customers’ many needs – filling prescriptions, scheduling vaccinations and using contact-free services at counters and drive-through windows – and, in return, they expected to be paid their legally earned wages.

In separate investigations of three San Antonio-area pharmacy operators, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division recovered a total of $58,659 in back wages owed to 28 workers for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime requirements.  

Division investigators found Carvajal Pharmacy LTC LLC, operator of six San Antonio locations, paid 11 workers straight time for all the hours they worked in violation of the federal law that requires additional overtime pay when employees work more than 40 hours in a workweek. The employer failed to pay overtime at six Carvajal Pharmacy locations and paid $54,705 in back wages as a result.

At Davila Pharmacy Inc., investigators found the employer failed to include “on-call” incentive pay when calculating overtime for 14 workers. The division recovered $3,687 in back wages for these workers.

At REXCO Pharmacy in Pleasanton, the division determined that operator James B. Magel computed overtime after 80 hours in a pay period incorrectly, instead of after 40 hours as the FLSA requires. By doing so, REXCO paid employees straight time for all hours worked, including those hours when overtime was owed. The employer also violated FLSA recordkeeping requirements. The REXCO Pharmacy investigation led to the recovery of $267 in back wages owed to three workers.

“Pharmacy workers proved to be an essential part of the workforce in the past year, and continue to play important roles in the wellbeing of our communities,” said Wage and Hour District Director Cynthia Ramos in San Antonio. “These investigations have recovered wages that should have been paid to these workers if their employers had followed the law. Employers are responsible for ensuring that their employees receive all of their legally earned wages.”

The department offers numerous resources to ensure employers have the tools they need to understand their responsibilities and to comply with federal law, such as online videos and confidential calls to local Wage and Hour Division offices.

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, and use its search tool 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.

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