JEFFERSON CITY, MO – The U.S. Department of Labor has filed suit in federal court against a Jefferson City buffet restaurant and its owner, after investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division found servers worked for tips only and cooks were paid a set cash salary regardless of how many hours they worked, leading to violations of minimum wage or overtime regulations. 

Date of action:           August 19, 2024

Type of action:          Temporary restraining order, preliminary injunction

BOSTON – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation has recovered $77,206 in back wages for five workers employed on a federally funded construction project after finding one subcontractor failed to pay prevailing wages and fringe benefits and another submitted falsified payroll records.

PORTLAND, OR – The U.S. Department of Labor has filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon against Dr. Robert B. Pamplin Jr. and R.B. Pamplin Corporation for jeopardizing millions of dollars in retirement funds for thousands of employees because of the unlawful acquisition of company-owned real estate by the R.B. Pamplin Corporation and Subsidiaries Pension Plan.

KANSAS CITY, KS – A federal jury in Kansas has awarded $957,324 in back wages for 168 workers at three Wichita-area restaurants jointly operated by three owners who willfully violated federal laws by using tips earned by servers to pay hosts and bussers and denying workers minimum and overtime wages.

Date of Action:          Sept.

Date of action:                       August 1, 2024 

FORT WAYNE, IN – A federal lawsuit has recovered $178,000 in back wages, damages and penalties from Hall Drive-Ins Inc., operator of 10 Fort Wayne-area restaurants, to resolve U.S. Department of Labor litigation filed in 2023 in light of the employers’ violations of tip-pool requirements in the Fair Labor Standards Act. 

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor, the National Labor Relations Board, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission today signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen competition by better coordinating information used by antitrust agencies to evaluate potential impacts of mergers and acquisitions on labor markets.

EVANSVILLE, IN – The U.S.

Date of action:           July 18, 2024

Type of action:          Administrative Review Board decision, order

Employer names:      Shalimar Distributors LLC, operating as Promised Land Truck Stop

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GREENVILLE, TN – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment in a Tennessee federal court that requires a Kingsport staffing agency to stop employing children illegally and forbids them from future violations of federal child labor laws.

SAN DIEGO – El Departamento de Trabajo de Estados Unidos obtuvo un requerimiento judicial preliminar y una orden judicial que prohíbe a una empresa de logística de Calexico amenazar o tomar represalias contra sus trabajadores e interferir aún más con una investigación federal en curso. 

SAN DIEGO – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a preliminary injunction and court order forbidding a Calexico logistics company from threatening or retaliating against its workers and further interfering with an ongoing federal investigation. 

Date of action:                       Aug. 6, 2024

Type of action:                      Decision and order 

Employers:    Dada Guru Hospitality Inc. operating as Quality Inn, Jackson, Michigan

                             Prakash Patel

Employers:                Old Woodward Ventures LLC, operating as Luxe Bar & Grill

                                         Kara Bongiovanni

SOUTH BEND, IN – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a permanent injunction and order forbidding the owner and operator of 61 Mega Liquor & Smoke stores in Indiana and Michigan from retaliating against workers who cooperate with U.S.

PHILADELPHIA – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a federal consent judgment requiring a Philadelphia-based home care services provider to pay 66 home health aides $129,697 in back wages and damages after investigations and litigation confirmed the employer willfully denied them overtime pay. 

Employers:    Ware Landscaping, Naperville, Illinois

                             Michael Ware, owner

Action:           U.S. Department of Labor complaint and consent judgment filing