June 30, 2022

US Department of Labor recovers $17K in restaurant workers’ tips after employer kept, used them to pay wages, expenses

Employer:                                          Smoky Hearth LLC

Investigation site:                             16607 Champion Way #100

June 30, 2022

US Labor Department recovers $247K in back wages, damages for 15 workers of oil pipeline construction company that illegally denied them overtime

CENTER, TX – A federal investigation recovered $247,334 in back wages and liquidated damages for 15 workers of a Texas oil pipeline construction company whose pay practices denied them their full wages, including overtime. The workers were employed at the company’s Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas job sites.

June 30, 2022

US Department of Labor proposes $315K more in fines for Ohio vehicle parts manufacturer that continues to expose workers to dangerous machine hazards

CONNEAUT, OH – An Ohio aluminum vehicle parts manufacturer cited for safety and health violations after a worker in Ravenna suffered fatal injuries in March 2021, continues to put workers at risk.

June 30, 2022

Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report

In the week ending June 25, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 231,000, a decrease of 2,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 4,000 from 229,000 to 233,000. The 4-week moving average was 231,750, an increase of 7,250 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 1,000 from 223,500 to 224,500.

June 29, 2022

Readout: US Department of Labor, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission host HIRE Roundtable on making workplaces more inclusive

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission hosted an online discussion on June 28, 2022, on skills-based hiring to promote equal employment opportunity in the workplace.

June 29, 2022

US Department of Labor investigation of 21-year-old worker’s fatal fall finds Burleson roofing contractor again ignored fall safety requirement

HOUSTON – On Jan. 26, 2022, a 21-year-old roofing worker suffered fatal injuries after falling about 30 feet through a skylight atop a Houston building, a fatality that a Burleson contractor could have been prevented if they had heeded a U.S. Department of Labor citation issued one month earlier.

June 29, 2022

Pittsburgh restaurant, distillery pays nearly $39K in back wages to 41 workers after US Department of Labor investigation finds illegal use of tip pool

PITTSBURGH – A Pittsburgh restaurant and distillery used its tip pool improperly – requiring servers to share tips with managers and supervisors– in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act, a federal investigation has found.

June 29, 2022

US Department of Labor recovers $90K in back wages, liquidated damages for 39 employees of Otsego County, New York, veterinary clinic

Employer name:                    Valley Veterinary Associates, 647 State Highway 7, Unadilla, New York 13849

June 29, 2022

Bojangles’ franchisee starts safety program for working minors at 93 locations after US Department of Labor finds violations in Spartanburg

SPARTANBURG, SC A federal investigation into child labor violations at a Spartanburg Bojangles has led the franchisee to partner with the U.S. Department of Labor to make sweeping changes to enhance working conditions for minor-aged workers and compliance with labor laws at the operator’s 93 locations in six states.

June 29, 2022

US Department of Labor proposes approval of Massachusetts’ occupational health, safety plan for local government workers

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration today published a proposed rulemaking to approve a new occupational safety and health plan for Massachusetts state and local employers and their employees.

June 28, 2022

US Department of Labor recovers $47K in back wages for 13 auto body shop workers wrongly misclassified as independent contractors by employer

Employer name:                      Sandpiper Autobody                                               

June 28, 2022

El Departamento de Trabajo de EE.UU. recupera $61,000 en salarios atrasados para 79 técnicos de reparación de aires acondicionados en Texas

Nombre del empleador:                   Envirotech Mechanical Systems LLC                                                                                               

June 28, 2022

US Department of Labor recovers $61K in back wages for 79 air conditioning repair technicians in Texas

Employer name:                    Envirotech Mechanical Systems LLC                                                                                         

June 28, 2022

Jersey Mike’s Subs pays $24K in penalties after federal investigation of child labor compliance at New Jersey, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Oregon, locations

MANASQUAN, NJ – A federal investigation has found that a popular chain of sandwich shops allowed 14- and 15-year-old workers to work beyond and outside hours permitted by child labor laws.

June 28, 2022

Georgia blasting, demolition contractor pays more than $5K penalty after allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to work near dynamite

Employer:                                          Controlled Blasting Inc.

June 28, 2022

US Department of Labor begins rulemaking process to revise standards for occupational exposure to lead

WASHINGTONThe U.S. Department of Labor announced that its Occupational Safety and Health Administration has published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to revise its standards for occupational exposure to lead.

Recent medical research on workplace lead exposure shows adverse health effects can occur in adults at lower blood lead levels than recognized previously in the medical removal levels specified in OSHA’s lead standards.

June 27, 2022

Federal court sentences Florida addiction recovery doctor to prison, to pay $31.3M in restitution after submitting $106M in fraudulent benefits claims

WEST PALM BEACH, FL – A federal court in Miami has sentenced the former medical director of a West Palm Beach residential addiction recovery center to prison and ordered more than $31 million in restitution paid as part of a healthcare scheme to obtain reimbursement for $106 million in false claims to more than 80 private insurance companies and federal healthcare benefit programs.