PLANO, TX – A customer management consulting company based in Plano “benched” an employee in violation of the federal H-1B visa program by hiring the nonimmigrant worker as a software developer then failing to use the worker and pay the wages promised, a U.S. Department of Labor investigation has found.

SIOUX FALLS, SD – Smithfield Packaged Meats Corp. – the country’s largest pork processor – has agreed to assemble a team of company and third-party experts to develop an infectious disease preparedness plan that the company will implement at all of its processing facilities nationwide.

BOSTON – A federal court has entered a consent judgment that recovers $165,044 for 75 workers at three Massachusetts restaurants that intentionally failed to pay overtime wages. The consent judgment also orders the defendants to pay $77,750 in civil money penalties given the willful nature of the violations.  

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the kickoff of the seventh annual National Apprenticeship Week, Nov. 15-21, a Presidential proclamation on apprenticeship and the launch of a new collaborative effort to expand, diversify and modernize Registered Apprenticeships in the U.S.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking public comment on a proposal to eliminate the Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Program, allowing the department to direct its resources toward expanding access to good-paying jobs through Registered Apprenticeships and create reliable pathways to middle class.

NAPLES, FL – Despite being cited twice in two years for exposing workers to dangerous fall hazards, one of the nation’s leading residential solar panel installation contractors has again violated federal workplace safety requirements, this time at a Naples work site.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today presented the 2021 Honoring Investments in Recruiting and Employing American Military Veterans Medallion Award to 849 employers from across the nation at a virtual ceremony. The annual awards recognize employers across the nation for their investment in recruiting, employing and retaining veterans.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor, National Labor Relations Board and U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission today announced a joint initiative to raise awareness about retaliation issues when workers exercise their protected labor rights.

In the week ending November 6, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 267,000, a decrease of 4,000 from the previous week's revised level. This is the lowest level for initial claims since March 14, 2020 when it was 256,000. The previous week's level was revised up by 2,000 from 269,000 to 271,000. The 4-week moving average was 278,000, a decrease of 7,250 from the previous week's revised average. This is the lowest level for this average since March 14, 2020 when it was 225,500. The previous week's average was revised up by 500 from 284,750 to 285,250.

HOUSTON - Los operadores de tres restaurantes de barbacoa de Texas del área de Houston, que rebajaron los salarios de sus trabajadores en repetidas ocasiones al no pagarles las horas extras cuando era necesario, han pagado $40,043 en salarios atrasados a 179 trabajadores, tras una reciente investigación federal.

HOUSTON – The operators of three Houston-area Texas buffet BBQ restaurants that shortchanged its workers’ wages repeatedly by failing to pay them overtime when required has paid $40,043 in back wages to 179 workers, following a recent federal investigation.

TULSA, OK – A Tulsa oilfield construction company denied overtime wages to nine electricians and electrician helpers when it paid them a flat salary for all the hours they worked in an attempt to avoid overtime pay, a federal investigation has found.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the newly redesigned Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion web site.

KANSAS CITY, MO ‒ Electrical hazards killed four workers in Missouri and Kansas in five months in 2021. In Missouri, on Oct. 4, a 40-year-old electrical contractor replacing light fixtures in Sedalia. On Sept. 23, a 22-year-old worker cleaning a Higbee pig barn with a pressure washer. In Wichita, Kansas, a 41-year-old doing heating and air conditioning work on July 13, and a month earlier, a 35-year-old electrical contractor climbing a pole in Lawrence, Kansas, on June 8.

HARTFORD, CT – A Connecticut aircraft parts manufacturer did not take required steps to identify potential exposures and protect employees from hexavalent chromium and cadmium – both known carcinogens – at its Bloomfield facility, a U.S. Department of Labor workplace safety inspection has found.

HOUSTON – All Seasons Hospitality and Investments LLC and owner Tanvir Shahmohd, operator of a Houston-area hotel, has agreed to pay an employee back wages and damages following a U.S. Department of Labor whistleblower investigation.

MARINETTE, WI – Recent federal safety inspections of a northern Wisconsin foundry determined workplace safety failures caused two workers to suffer severe injuries. In May, a worker lost two fingers to amputation and in July, an overhead hot metal carrier struck and injured another worker.  

GAINESVILLE, FL - Un contratista de techos de Gainesville aprendió que debe pagar a sus empleados por todo el tiempo que trabajan, incluyendo el trabajo de preparación antes del turno y el trabajo después del turno al final del día, tras una investigación del Departamento de Trabajo de Estados Unidos.

GAINESVILLE, FL – A Gainesville roofing contractor learned it must pay its employees for all of the time they work, including pre-shift prep work and post-shift work at day’s end, following a U.S. Department of Labor investigation.

MONACA, PA – A federal court has ordered a Beaver County gas station and convenience store to cease violating the Fair Labor Standards Act and pay back wages and liquidated damages to two underpaid employees. The judgment follows a U.S. Department of Labor investigation that determined the owners of Monaca Sunoco, located at 1479 Old Brodhead Road, intentionally underpaid a married couple who lived and worked there.