WASHINGTON, DC - The U.S. Department of Labor's Retaining Employment and Talent After Injury/Illness Network (RETAIN) today announced nearly $19 million in grants to eight state agencies to identify new, replicable strategies to help those who develop a potentially disabling condition remain at or return to work.

PENNSAUKEN, NJ – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited pretzel manufacturer J&J Snack Foods Corp. after a worker at its Pennsauken, New Jersey, plant suffered a partial finger amputation. The company faces $206,019 in proposed penalties.

BOSTON, MA – The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has entered a consent judgment requiring Boston-based Village Pizza and Grill and its owner, Klaundjon Totoni, to pay $115,841 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 14 employees, plus $8,317 in civil penalties. The judgment follows an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) that identified violations of the child labor, overtime, minimum wage, and recordkeeping requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

FORSYTH, GA – The Georgia Department of Corrections has paid $429,005 in back wages to 1,257 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation uncovered overtime violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) at more than 40 facilities statewide.

WASHINGTON, DC – With over 1.1 million jobs currently open in healthcare and social assistance, the U.S. Department of Labor today announced a proposal to allow younger Americans to safely develop critical skills for fast-growing jobs in healthcare – which are expected to add 2.4 million jobs, more than any other occupation, through 2026.

DETROIT, MI – The City of Detroit, Michigan, has created a total of five lactation stations and amended its break policy to accommodate nursing employees’ needs to express and store milk during the workday. The policy changes follow an investigation by the U.S.

LAKEWOOD, CO – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Vforge Inc. – based in Lakewood, Colorado – for machine safety hazards after an employee suffered fatal injuries while working on a forging machine. The company faces proposed penalties of $225,046.

KANSAS CITY, MO ‒ The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has launched a new program to address hazards from exposure to fertilizer-grade ammonium nitrate (FGAN) and agricultural anhydrous ammonium.

WHITE PLAINS, NY – The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York has entered a consent judgment requiring Hudson View Care Center Inc. - doing business as Regency Extended Care Center - and owner Michael Melnicke to pay $182,500 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 81 employees, plus $20,000 in civil penalties. The judgment follows an investigation by the U.S.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management (OASAM), Civil Rights Center (CRC), will publish in tomorrow’s Federal Register a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking as well as a Direct Final Rule that would rescind its regulations implementing the nondiscrimination and equal opportunity provisions in Section 167 of the Job Training Partnership Act of 1982, as amended (JTPA). CRC proposed the rescission because the regulations concern programs that are no longer operative.

PHOENIX, AZ – Insearch Corp. – based in Tempe, Arizona – will pay $64,584 to 73 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation found the transportation company violated minimum wage, overtime, and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

GUAYNABO, P.R. – In the year since hurricanes Irma and Maria struck Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) has recovered $14,337,657 in unpaid wages for 7,761 employees engaged in recovery work in those territories. WHD has also undertaken significant outreach activities to educate employers and employees about compliance with federal wage laws, as part of its ongoing hurricane response efforts.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced nearly $110 million in Trade and Economic Transition Dislocated Worker Grants (DWGs) for state, tribal, and non-profit entities that are working in collaboration with community partners and local Workforce Development Boards to prepare Americans for professions in high-growth employment sectors.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the National Industry Liaison Group (NILG) to support contractor education and training; enable proactive compliance with OFCCP's regulations; and minimize, to the extent feasible, the cost of compliance by contractors.  

SANDUSKY, OH – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Cedar Fair LP – which operates as Cedar Point – for failing to protect workers from fall hazards after an employee suffered serious injuries at its Sandusky, Ohio, amusement park. The company faces proposed penalties of $142,270 for one willful and one serious safety violation, the maximum penalties allowed under the law.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the award of a Disaster Recovery National Dislocated Worker Grant (DWG) to the North Carolina Department of Commerce to assess workforce needs in response to Hurricane Florence.

MONTGOMERY, AL – Ozark Safety Services LLC – based in Montgomery, Alabama – has paid a former employee $10,095 in lost wages after a U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation found the company violated the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

WHD investigators found Ozark Safety Services LLC discharged the employee for absences that qualified for FMLA-protected leave. Rather than categorizing the absences as allowed and covered under the FMLA, the company labeled them as unauthorized, and took improper disciplinary action.

OPELIKA, AL – An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) has resulted in the Opelika, Alabama, Police Department paying $56,681 in back wages to seven officers for violations of overtime and recordkeeping requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

SAN ANTONIO, TX – Today, U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta delivered the keynote address at the Texas Workforce Commission's 2nd Annual ApprenticeshipTexas Conference in San Antonio, Texas.  Secretary Acosta spoke on the Trump Administration's efforts to expand apprenticeships across all industries.

"I want to thank Commissioner Alvarez and the Texas Workforce Commission for the great work that is being done to expand apprenticeships in the Lone Star State," said Secretary Acosta.

ELLWOOD CITY, PA – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD), Boehm Family Enterprises LLC – doing business as McElwain Brothers Paint and Collision in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania – has paid $33,731 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 12 mechanics and painters to resolve violations of the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).