US Labor Department recovers $58K in back wages for 13 Tennessee hotel workers after employer failed to pay wages to one, overtime to other workers

Employer:                                Ashmi Hotel Corp., operating as Quality Inn

Investigation site:                  2741 York Road, Pleasant View, TN 37146

Investigation findings: Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division found the employer failed to pay one housekeeper for any hours worked, a minimum wage violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Ashmi Hotel also paid some housekeepers and front desk staff by check for their first 40 hours worked, then by cash at their regular rate for any hours over 40 in a workweek. By doing so, the employer did not pay the additional half-time rate for overtime hours, as the law requires.

In addition, investigators found the employer failed to pay some workers for time spent running errands to the grocery store for hotel supplies. When properly recorded as time worked, some employees’ workweeks increased to more than 40 hours and overtime wages were owed. The division also determined Ashmi Hotel failed to keep accurate records of workers’ hours.

Back Wages Recovered: $58,835 for 13 workers.                             

Quote: “When employers break the law to save the business a few bucks, they deprive workers from their hard-earned wages and make it harder for them to provide for themselves,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Lisa Kelly in Nashville, Tennessee. “Hotel workers are some of the lowest paid in this country, and we are committed to these vulnerable workers, and others like them, to make sure they get paid what they earned.”

Background: The division offers online resources for employers, such as an overview of overtime provisions contained in the FLSA. Employers can also contact the Wage and Hour Division at its toll-free number, 1-866-4-US-WAGE. Learn more about Wage and Hour Division.

Workers who feel they may not be getting the wages they earned may contact a Wage and Hour Division representative in their state through a list and interactive online map on the agency’s website. Workers and employers alike can help ensure hours worked and pay are accurate by downloading the department’s Android Timesheet App for free, which is available in English and Spanish.