COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced that Colorado Springs, Colo., School District 11 has paid a total of $652,041 to 442 employees for violations of the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

"This administration is committed to ensuring that workers receive all the wages they have earned," said Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao. "I am pleased that we were able to recover more than $650,000 in back wages for these Colorado workers."

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The U.S. Labor Department has recovered $48,035 in overtime back wages for 33 employees of AJA Technical and Management Services, following an investigation by the department's Wage and Hour Division.

Employees of the Jackson, Miss.-based company worked as quality inspectors overseeing Hurricane Katrina-related debris cleanup along the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced its participation in the U.S. Department of Justice Hurricane Katrina Fraud Task Force. Participation by the department's Wage and Hour Division will enable better coordination and prosecution of violations of wage and hour laws.

Janitors Cleaned Movie Theaters throughout Southern California

SAN FRANCISCO — The U.S. Department of Labor announced today the filing of a lawsuit against Glendale, California-based, Janitorial Carpet's Maintenance for minimum wage, overtime pay and recordkeeping violations of federal law. The violations resulted from the employer's improper classification of workers as independent contractors.

SALT LAKE CITY — The U.S. Labor Department is seeking to recover more than $7.1 million in back wages for 7,171 employees of Huntleigh USA Corporation following a Service Contract Act (SCA) investigation by the departments Wage and Hour Division in Salt Lake City, Utah.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The U.S. Labor Department announced today that Fidelity National Financial agreed to pay a total of $778,392 in back wages to 1,895 workers after a Wage and Hour Division investigation found they had not been paid in accordance with provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labors Administrative Review Board has upheld fines against the farm labor contractor who employed 14 migrant forestry workers killed Sept. 12, 2002, in a tragic accident in northern Maine.

The unsuccessful appeal, filed by Evergreen Forestry Services of Sandpoint, Idaho, and Peter Smith III, the companys president and owner, contested a $17,000 civil money penalty. The fine was assessed following a Wage and Hour Division investigation conducted under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA).

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor has announced an agreement with the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) that will result in payment of more than $6.5 million in back wages to almost 900 pilots, co-pilots and flight engineers. The employees worked on several USPS contracts and subcontracts to transport mail by air between January 1996 and August 2001. Wages paid were subject to requirements of the Service Contract Act (SCA).

CHICAGO — Internet employment recruiter Careerbuilder.com, headquartered in Chicago, has paid $524,216 to 677 workers to resolve allegations of overtime pay violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) brought by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division.

"We have recovered over half-a-million dollars for these workers," said Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. "We are committed to ensuring that workers are paid all the wages they have earned."

BALTIMORE — A federal district court has ordered Self Pride Inc. of Baltimore, Md., and its president, executive director and chief executive officer to pay $372,664 in overtime back wages to 392 current and former employees following a trial before U.S. District Court Judge Richard D. Bennett. The court also ordered Self-Pride to pay $155,240 in liquidated damages.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The U.S. Labor Department has recovered $141,887 in back wages for 106 employees of KTC Services, following an investigation by the department's Wage and Hour Division under the Service Contract Act and the Contract Work Hours Safety Standards Act.

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the reopening, at new temporary locations, of the Wage and Hour Division's New Orleans district office and Biloxi, Miss., field office. Following Hurricane Katrina both offices were damaged and closed. The work normally handled out of these offices continued in the aftermath of the hurricane from the Baton Rouge, La., Mobile, Ala., and Hattiesburg, Miss., field offices, as well as the Jackson, Miss., area office.

DETROIT—Computech Inc., a Southfield, Mich., firm that places computer professionals at locations throughout the United States has agreed to pay $2,250,000 in back wages to 232 computer professionals and a $400,000 fine to settle immigration law violations, the U.S. Labor Department announced today.

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) clarifies recordkeeping provisions concerning who is an applicant in the context of the Internet and related technologies. The final rule published in today's Federal Register applies to federal contractors who are subject to the recordkeeping provisions of the laws enforced by OFCCP.

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Labor today announced mandatory minimum wage rate increases for American Samoa. The rate increases will apply to all government employees and several of the covered private sector industries in the territory.

In June, the department appointed a six member committee to review local economic conditions and hear testimony from interested parties at a public meeting held in Pago Pago, American Samoa. The six-member committee was comprised of two members each representing the public sector, employers and employees.

WASHINGTON—Today the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Labor - Management Standards (OLMS) issued guidance for unions in the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina regarding the reporting requirements under Section 201 of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (LMRDA).

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued a final rule today that fully implements the Wage Determinations OnLine (WDOL) Internet Web site at www.wdol.gov. The new rule updates existing regulations to allow contracting agencies to request and obtain wage determinations through the online services provided by the Web site.

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) will publish in Monday's Federal Register a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to update the Form LM-30, required by the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (LMRDA). The LM-30 disclosure form must be used by labor union officers and employees to report potential financial conflicts of interest.

WASHINGTON—The Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) will publish a Request for Information in Monday's Federal Register to solicit public comments on whether the Labor Department should issue guidelines on section 501(a) of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA). Section 501 imposes a fiduciary obligation on officers, agents, shop stewards and other representatives of labor organizations.

WASHINGTON—Summer jobs in construction may be a young person's first work experience, and the U.S. Department of Labor wants to make sure it's a safe and healthy one. To that end, the department has launched a new nationwide outreach campaign to increase awareness about youth employment laws in construction.