Court orders Ideal Discount Market in New Orleans to pay employees $403K in overtime back wages

Date of Action: Nov. 3, 2015

Type of Action: Consent Judgment

Name of Defendant: Ideal Discount Market, 250 S. Broad Inc. doing business as Ideal Discount Market; Kaki and Son LLC doing business as Ideal Market #6; Kaki Inc. doing business as Ideal Discount Market #1; Morales Brothers LLC doing business as Ideal Market; Rampart Fuel LLC doing business as Ideal Market; and P.R. Enterprises Inc. doing business as Ideal Discount Market #4; and two individuals Muwafak "Mike" Kaki and Gassan "Jimmy" Kaki.

Allegations: An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division revealed that Ideal Discount Market in New Orleans paid workers straight time for all hours worked and failed to pay overtime at time and one-half for hours worked beyond 40 in a work week as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act. Additionally, Ideal Discount Market failed to keep accurate records of employees' hours and pay, with some employees working entirely "off the books."

Resolution: The court ordered the six corporations and two individuals named in the lawsuit to pay a total of $403,344 in back wages and liquidated damages to 56 employees including cooks, butchers, cashiers and stockers. The consent judgment also enjoins the corporations and individuals from violating the FLSA in the future and forbids them from retaliating against current and former employees.

Quote: "Cheating employees out of their hard-earned wages is inexcusable. These violations not only hurt employees and their families, but provide the employer an unfair competitive advantage over others who obey the law," said Betty Campbell, acting regional administrator for the Wage and Hour Division in the Southwest. "Employers must understand their obligations to record and pay for all hours worked by their employees. The Wage and Hour Division will use every enforcement tool at our disposal to ensure a fair day's pay for a fair day's work."

Court: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana in New Orleans

Docket Number: 2:13-cv-4914