Packaging Company Pays $420,000 to 205 Employees In Settlement Agreement with U.S. Department of Labor

BOSTON, MA – A Dudley contract packager of aerosol containers and the U.S. Department of Labor have reached a settlement agreement resolving alleged violations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Shield Packaging Co. Inc. has paid $210,227 and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 205 employees and pledged future compliance with the FLSA.

The Department’s Wage and Hour Division found that the company failed to pay the employees overtime based on their regular pay rates between April 1, 2015, and Oct. 31, 2016. The company also failed to pay employees for – and keep proper records of – the time they spent putting on and removing safety equipment required for their jobs. The FLSA requires that employees receive one-and-one-half times their regular rates of pay for hours they work beyond 40 in a workweek and that employers maintain accurate records of employees’ wages and work hours.

The Division’s investigation was part of a joint enforcement effort with the Fair Labor Division of the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office. The state’s investigation identified alleged violations of state laws including failure to pay minimum wage, hindrance, and paystub violations, for which the company will pay more than $564,000 in wages and penalties.

“This cooperative federal-state effort and the resulting settlements compensate these employees for wages they rightfully earned but did not receive. As the Department of Labor enforces the Fair Labor Standards Act, we encourage all employers to take advantage of the Division’s education and outreach efforts to help them understand their responsibilities and how to properly comply with the law,” said the Wage and Hour Division’s Northeast Regional Administrator Mark Watson Jr.

Senior Trial Attorney Susan Salzberg of the Department’s Boston Regional Solicitor’s Office provided legal support in this matter.

The Wage and Hour Division is committed to providing employers with the tools they need to understand and comply with the variety of labor laws the Division enforces in a variety of languages. It offers useful resources ranging from an interactive E-laws advisor to a complete library of free, downloadable workplace posters. In addition, the Division’s Community Outreach and Resource Planning Specialists 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.

For more information about the FLSA, contact the Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243) or its Boston District Office at 617-624-6700. Information also is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd.