Maui substance treatment center pays $45K in back wages, damages and penalties

Employer: Aloha House Inc., doing business as Maui Behavioral Health Resources.

Site: 200 Ike Drive, Makawao, Hawaii 96768

Investigation findings: Aloha House, a mental health service provider and substance abuse treatment center, paid for overtime hours worked by several of its behavior health services employees at time and a half the federal minimum wage of $7.25 rather than time and a half the employees' regular hourly rates, as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act. Overtime pay is due for hours worked beyond forty in a workweek, and must be one and one-half times the regular hourly rate of pay a worker receives.

Resolution: The employer agreed to pay $17,556 to 19 employees who had been paid in violation of the overtime provisions of the FLSA. Aloha House will also pay the employees an additional $17,556 in damages as well as a $9,900 fine for implementing an overtime pay policy that was non-compliant with federal overtime standards.

Quote: "Employers cannot undermine the integrity of the FLSA's overtime pay requirements by artificially lowering workers' rates for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek," said Terence Trotter, director of the Wage and Hour District Office in Honolulu.

Information: The Fair Labor Standards Act requires that covered employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, as well as one and one-half times their regular rates for every hour they work beyond 40 per week. The law also prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for exercising their rights and requires employers to maintain accurate records of employees' wages, hours, and other conditions of employment.

The FLSA provides an exemption from both minimum wage and overtime pay requirements for individuals employed in bona fide executive, administrative, professional and outside sales positions, as well as certain computer employees. To qualify for exemption, employees generally must meet certain tests regarding their job duties and be paid on a salary basis at not less than $455 per week. Job titles do not determine exempt status. In order for an exemption to apply, an employee's specific job duties and salary must meet all the requirements of the department's regulations. For more information about federal wage laws administered by the Wage and Hour Division, call the agency's toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.