News Brief
US Department of Labor recovers $135K in back wages, damages for 57 employees denied overtime by Minnesota homecare provider
Employers: Axis Home PCA Agency Inc.
Cubtan Nur, owner
Action: Consent judgment and order
Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota
Court action: The Department of Labor has recovered $135,000, representing $67,500 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages, for 57 employees of Axis Home PCA Agency Inc. after an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division found the Minneapolis employer violated the Fair Labor Standard Act’s overtime and recordkeeping provisions.
The department filed a complaint on Aug.15, 2022, after investigators found Axis typically paid their employees straight-time pay for all hours worked - failing to pay employees one and half times their regular rates for hours over 40 in a workweek - from at least May 16, 2019, to May 15, 2021. Its employees provide in-home personal care services to children and adults.
Quote: “These caregivers provide their clients with critical in-home care to maintain their dignity and support their ongoing care needs. They deserve the wages they have rightfully earned for their hard work and dedication,” said Wage and Hour District Director Kristin Tout in Minneapolis. “Employers are legally responsible for knowing and complying with federal wage laws.”
“The injunctive relief provided by this consent judgment - including requiring the payment of overtime whenever an employee works more than 40 hours, regardless of whether they are working for different clients or doing different tasks - will protect Axis’s employees,” added Regional Solicitor of Labor Christine Z. Heri in Chicago. “The department will continue to allocate its resources to protect caregivers, who are disproportionally women of color and among the nation’s lowest paid workers.”
Background: In fiscal year 2023, the Wage and Hour Division recovered more than $31.8 million in back wages for workers in the healthcare industry nationwide and $528,886 for workers in Minnesota. The Wage and Hour Division offers resources for health care workers on its website.
Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division and how to file an online complaint. For confidential compliance assistance, employees and employers can call the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243), regardless of where they are from.
Download the agency’s new Timesheet App for iOS and Android devices – also available in Spanish –to ensure hours and pay are accurate.
United States Department of Labor v. Axis Home PCA Agency, Cubtan Nur, owner
