January 31, 2022

US Department of Labor announces availability of $15M in state grants to improve delivery of benefits, services by state unemployment systems

WASHINGTON – At the height of the pandemic, displaced workers flooded state unemployment insurance systems across the nation with requests for assistance and benefits, exposing many antiquated systems and their vulnerabilities.

January 31, 2022

US Department of Labor awards $2.4M in funding for employment, training services to combat West Virginia’s opioid crisis

WASHINGTON – In the last decade, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that the number of fatal overdoses in West Virginia has nearly tripled, nearly 85 percent of them linked to controlled substances including opioids. Nationally, the CDC estimates 91 of the more than 140 Americans who die each day from drug overdose fall victim to opioids.

January 31, 2022

US Department of Labor awards $2M in funding to provide employment, training services to combat Maine’s opioid crisis

WASHINGTON – With opioid-related overdoses linked to nearly 2,700 deaths in Maine between 2010 and 2019, and tens of thousands of Maine residents living with chronic addiction, opioid usage remains a serious health emergency there.

January 27, 2022

Court orders Norfolk staffing agency to pay more than $7.2M in back wages, damages to 1,105 aides, nurses after federal investigation, litigation

NORFOLK, VA – A federal court in Virginia has entered a judgment ordering a Norfolk-based medical staffing agency, which intentionally violated federal laws and denied 1,105 certified nursing aides, licensed practical nurses and registered nurses their rightfully earned overtime wages, to pay more than $7.2 million in back wages and liquidated damages.

January 27, 2022

Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report

In the week ending January 22, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 260,000, a decrease of 30,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 4,000 from 286,000 to 290,000. The 4-week moving average was 247,000, an increase of 15,000 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 1,000 from 231,000 to 232,000.

January 26, 2022

US Department of Labor, Departments of Treasury, State, Commerce, Homeland Security, US Trade Representative issue Burma business advisory

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor – in collaboration with the Departments of the Treasury, State, Commerce, Homeland Security and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative – today issued a Burma Business Advisory highlighting the risks of doing business due to corruption, illicit finance and human rights abuses.

January 25, 2022

Federal court orders shuttle service to pay $742K in wages, damages to 368 employees after US Department of Labor investigation, litigation

NEW YORK – The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York has entered a consent judgment  ordering a Brooklyn bus and shuttle service to pay $742,500 in back wages and liquidated damages for overtime wages denied to 368 shuttle drivers, following an investigation and litigation by the U.S. Department of Labor.

January 25, 2022

US Department of Labor announces pilot program to encourage COVID-19 vaccination among miners in Kentucky, Arizona

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a new program designed to encourage and help America’s miners to get the COVID-19 protections that vaccinations offer.

January 25, 2022

Federal investigation recovers $221K in back wages, damages for 59 workers

BOISE – The U.S. Department of Labor recovered $221,053 in back wages and liquidated damages for 59 drywall installation workers in Idaho after their employer recklessly denied them overtime wages they earned and then lied to investigators about it.

January 25, 2022

US Department of Labor recovers $36K in back wages, damages after finding Fort Myers air conditioning company’s pay practices violated federal law

FORT MYERS, FL – A Fort Myers heating, ventilating and air conditioning company paid commissions and stipends to a rotation of on-call dispatchers but failed to include those payments in the workers’ rate of pay when calculating overtime in violation of federal law, the U.S. Department of Labor has determined.

January 24, 2022

El Departamento de Trabajo de EE.UU. ofrece un seminario en linea para ayudar a los empleadores de restaurantes del sureste a evitar las infracciones más comunes en materia de trabajo juvenil

ATLANTA - Cada año, millones de menores de 18 años se incorporan al mercado laboral estadounidense, muchos de ellos en la industria del servicio de alimentos. El Departamento de Trabajo de los Estados Unidos está trabajando intensamente para garantizar que los empleadores de restaurantes del sureste conozcan sus obligaciones legales en relación con el empleo de menores y para frenar el reciente aumento del incumplimiento.

January 24, 2022

US Department of Labor proposes $145K in fines after worker suffers fatal injury at Chicago-area pizza manufacturer

CREST HILL, IL – A 42-year-old employee of a Crest Hill frozen-pizza manufacturer suffered a fatal injury while cleaning a machine on July 20, 2021.

January 24, 2022

Tire, auto repair shop pays $79K in back wages after US Department of Labor uncovers overtime violations

ATLANTA – Employers must accurately count all the hours employees work and include certain commissions earned when calculating overtime pay due. Failing to do so can lead to violations and result in unexpected costs in the form of back wages and, in some cases, penalties.

January 24, 2022

US Department of Labor cites Pomp’s Tire Service after Abbotsford worker suffers fatal trauma while attempting to mount tire on rim

ABBOTSFORD, WI ‒ At the Abbotsford location of a popular Midwest tire sales-and-service provider, a worker mounting a new tire sustained fatal injuries after the tire came loose and struck him on July 28, 2021. A few weeks later, another worker from the same company suffered a similar fate at a Savage, Minnesota, location on Aug. 17, 2021.

January 24, 2022

US Department of Labor commits to continuing the fight against human trafficking through collaboration, enforcement, outreach

WASHINGTON – As National Human Trafficking Prevention Month concludes, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division continues to support the updated U.S.

January 24, 2022

US Department of Labor offers webinar to help Southeast’s restaurant employers avoid common child labor compliance violations

ATLANTA – Millions of minors under the age of 18 join the U.S. workforce each year – many in the food industry – and the U.S. Department of Labor is working hard to ensure restaurant employers in the Southeast know their legal obligations regarding the employment of minors and to curb a recent increase in noncompliance.

January 21, 2022

READOUT: Secretary Walsh addresses US Conference of Mayors' Winter Meeting

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh unveiled the Department of Labor’s “Good Jobs” initiative, a coordinated effort by Biden-Harris administration to improve job quality nationwide, during a speech today at the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ 90th Winter Meeting in Washington, D.C.

January 21, 2022

US Secretary of Labor announces Biden-Harris administration’s coordinated effort to improve job quality nationwide

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh today announced an initiative aimed at improving job quality throughout the country. The “Good Jobs” initiative, led by the Department of Labor, will provide critical information to workers, employers and government entities as they seek to improve job quality, and create access to good union jobs – free from discrimination and harassment – for all workers and job seekers.

January 21, 2022

Federal court paves way for 16 employees of defunct Bay Area construction company to access $1M in retirement assets

SAN FRANCISCO – Sixteen people participating in an employee retirement plan sponsored by a now defunct Danville construction company will receive distributions of almost $1 million in assets following an investigation and litigation by the U.S. Department of Labor.