Tucson Restaurant to Pay Employees $114,964 in Back Wages, Damages After U.S. Department of Labor Investigation Finds Violations

PHOENIX, AZ –  After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD), Chuy’s Mesquite Broiler – a restaurant based in Tucson, Arizona – will pay $114,964 in back wages and damages to 55 employees and $20,372 in civil penalties for violating minimum wage and overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WHD investigators found the employer failed to pay some employees for all the time that they worked. The employer violated FLSA provisions when the wages they paid failed to meet the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour for all the hours they worked. Overtime violations resulted from the employer’s practice of paying employees for only their first 40 hours each workweek by payroll check, paying for any overtime hours either in cash, or in a separate check, at straight-time rates. The employer also failed to record accurately the total number of hours employees actually worked, a violation of FLSA recordkeeping requirements.

“Employers have an obligation to record and pay their employees for all the hours that they work,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Eric Murray in Phoenix, Arizona. “The U.S. Department of Labor is committed to ensuring that businesses that violate labor laws do not gain an unfair advantage over those that play by the rules. We encourage employers and employees to reach out to us to familiarize themselves with their obligations and rights under the law.”

The Department offers numerous resources to ensure employers have the tools they need to understand their responsibilities and to comply with federal law, such as online videos, confidential calls, or in-person visits to local WHD offices.

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/agencies/whd.

WHD’s mission is to promote and achieve compliance with labor standards to protect and enhance the welfare of the nation's workforce. WHD enforces federal minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping and child labor requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act. WHD also enforces the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act, the Employee Polygraph Protection Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, wage garnishment provisions of the Consumer Credit Protection Act and a number of employment standards and worker protections as provided in several immigration related statutes. Additionally, WHD administers and enforces the prevailing wage requirements of the Davis Bacon Act and the Service Contract Act and other statutes applicable to federal contracts for construction and for the provision of goods and services.

The mission of the Department of Labor is to foster, promote and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers and retirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights.