U.S. Department of Labor Investigation Results in Arizona Construction Company Paying $214,392 to 145 Employees

PHOENIX, AZ – After a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation, the U.S. District Court of Arizona entered a consent judgment that requires Scottsdale construction contractor MNI Enterprises Inc. to pay $214,392 in back wages to 145 employees for violating the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The court also ordered the employer to pay an additional $25,608 in penalties because of the willful and repeated nature of the violations found.

The Wage and Hour Division investigators determined MNI Enterprises Inc. - doing business as U.S. Carpentry Tucson LLC - paid employees on a piece-rate basis without regard to the number of hours worked. Overtime violations resulted when the company failed to pay the required overtime premium of time-and-one-half for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek. Investigators found similar overtime violations as a result of two earlier investigations of the company in 2004 and 2013.

“Paying employees on a piece-rate basis does not automatically make them exempt from overtime,” said Eric Murray, Wage and Hour Division District Director in Phoenix. “This agreement helps stop non-compliant employers from gaining an unfair competitive advantage over those that strive to abide by the law. We urge all employers to reach out to us for compliance assistance.”    

The Department’s regional Office of the Solicitor litigated the case. 

Employees and employers with questions about the FLSA or any of the federal wage laws administered by the Division should call the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). All calls are confidential. More information is available online at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.