Participants:                          U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division

Employers:    Reliance Staffing LLC, Fahim Uddin, owner

Actions:          Fair Labor Standards Act consent judgment

Courts:           U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan 

Who:               U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division          

What:             Labor law webinar for Hospitality Worker Appreciation Day 

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su issued the following statement on the January 2024 Employment Situation report: 

“Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the American economy added 353,000 jobs in January, bringing the total jobs created under President Biden to 14.8 million. The unemployment rate held at its steady, low rate of 3.7 percent. This continues a two-year trend of a jobless rate under four percent, the longest stretch in more than 50 years.  

WASHINGTON – This week, Acting Secretary Su traveled to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Columbia, South Carolina, to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration’s pro-worker agenda is making a positive impact in communities across the country.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration today released the results of its second 2023 pattern of violations screening to identify chronic violators and mine operators demonstrating a disregard for the health and safety of miners. This was the first time that the agency conducted more than one POV screening in a single calendar year.

PITTSBURGH – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs has entered into a conciliation agreement with Michael Baker International Inc. to resolve allegations of pay discrimination against female employees in the engineering functional unit.

Employer name:  Ole Jose Grill & Cantina LLC, operating as Ole, Jose Grill & Cantina

Employer address: 564 River Drive Ave., Pineville, West Virginia 24784

HOUSTON: El Departamento de Trabajo de los EE. UU. recuperó $460,857 en concepto de sueldos atrasados y daños después de que los investigadores federales descubrieran que un supermercado de Houston no pagó las horas extras a 104 trabajadores.

HOUSTON – The U.S. Department of Labor recovered $460,857 in back wages and damages after federal investigators found a Houston supermarket failed to pay 104 workers overtime wages.

Employer name:  Arbor E&T LLC, doing business as Res-Care Workforce Services, doing business as Equus Workforce Solutions

Investigation site:  245 Depot St., St. Marys, Pennsylvania 15857

In the week ending January 27, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 224,000, an increase of 9,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 214,000 to 215,000. The 4-week moving average was 207,750, an increase of 5,250 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 202,250 to 202,500.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced an updated procedure for determining whether nuclear weapons workers qualify for benefits related to beryllium exposure under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Act. The update implements provisions of the Beryllium Testing Fairness Act, signed into law by President Biden as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2024 on Dec. 22, 2023.

SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a default judgment against Paul G. Fillet DMD Inc. and Dr. Paul G. Fillet for having unlawfully withdrawn more than $85,000 of employees’ retirement money from an employer-sponsored plan and abandoned the plan, preventing two participants from accessing roughly $160,000 in retirement savings.

PAULSBORO, NJ – A transportation company is facing $437,860 in federal penalties after an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration found workplace safety and health hazards at its Paulsboro site.

HOMESTEAD, FL – A Homestead drywall contractor could have prevented a hoisting incident in July 2023 by following required safety regulations, a federal workplace investigation has found. A 22-year-old worker suffered a fatal head injury following the incident.

MILTON, WV – The U.S. Department of Labor obtained a consent judgment and order in federal court requiring the trustees of coal producer Blackjewel LLC’s 401(k) plan to pay $637,014 in equitable restitution after an investigation found they violated fiduciary duties under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.

MILTON, WV – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration has entered into a settlement agreement to resolve more than $1.2 million in unpaid medical claims by the Revelation Energy LLC health care plan based in Milton.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced an incremental award of $768,337 to support continued efforts to provide disaster-relief jobs and employment and training services for people in Massachusetts communities, helping to address the health and economic effects of widespread opioid use, addiction and overdose. 

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the incremental award of $800,000 to the Mississippi Department of Employment Security to support continued disaster-relief employment for residents of Mississippi as the state continues to recover from the severe storms, straight-line winds and tornadoes that killed 21 people and ravaged towns in March 2023.