U.S. Department of Labor Investigation Results in South Carolina Roofing Company Paying $156,346 in Back Wages to 84 Employees

MYRTLE BEACH, SC – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD), Monarch Co. – based in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and operating as Monarch Roofing – will pay $156,346 in back wages to 84 employees for violating overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WHD investigators determined the employer incorrectly classified 81 salaried employees as exempt from overtime, paying them flat salaries without regard to the number of hours they actually worked. This practice resulted in overtime violations when the employees worked more than 40 hours in a workweek, but were not paid overtime. Monarch Co. also failed to pay three hourly employees additional half-time when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek, as required. Investigators also found the commercial and residential roofing company failed to include employees' non-discretionary bonuses when they did calculate and pay overtime. Excluding these amounts resulted in the employer paying overtime at rates lower than those required by law.

The firm also failed to keep time records for the salaried workers, resulting in recordkeeping violations under the FLSA.

"Employers must familiarize themselves with their obligations to ensure they pay workers the wages they have legally earned," said Wage and Hour Division District Director Jamie Benefiel, in Columbia, South Carolina. "The U.S. Department of Labor encourages employers to contact us if they have questions about overtime compliance for their hourly and salaried employees. We offer a wide variety of compliance assistance tools and stand ready to help employers. Violations like these can be avoided."

For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact the toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Employers who discover overtime or minimum wage violations may self-report and resolve those violations without litigation through the PAID program. Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd.