WASHINGTON – To bolster community colleges’ and other institutions’ efforts to deliver more equitable education and training, the U.S. Department of Labor today announced the availability of a $50 million funding opportunity to help people in marginalized and underrepresented populations overcome barriers to the career and technical education programs they need to be connected to good-paying jobs. 

WASHINGTON – To help identify and address barriers workers face in accessing state unemployment insurance benefits, the U.S. Department of Labor today announced the award of more than $9.1 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding to the Texas Workforce Commission.

The grant is the largest equity grant awarded to a single state under this funding opportunity, which provides states up to $260 million to improve equity in their unemployment insurance program.

ORANGE CITY, FL – An Orlando framing contractor’s failure to comply with building code requirements and a roof truss manufacturer’s engineering specification caused the roof trusses to collapse and fatally injure a 67-year-old worker at an Orange City building site on Nov. 8, 2021.

In the week ending May 28, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 200,000, a decrease of 11,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 210,000 to 211,000. The 4-week moving average was 206,500, a decrease of 500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 206,750 to 207,000.

MANCHESTER, NH – A federal court has entered a consent order against a Salem landscaping contractor, operating in southern New Hampshire and northeastern Massachusetts, which requires the New Hampshire-based contractor to pay a total of $283,020 – $141,510 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages – to 19 workers to resolve violations of the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

WASHINGTON – In response to a vote by workers on May 25-26, 2022, at a General Motors’ facility in Silao, Mexico, to approve a recently negotiated collective bargaining agreement, U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh issued the following statement:

YUMA, AZ - Una investigación federal que descubrió que el operador de una franquicia con siete restaurantes de McDonald’s en Yuma negó salarios completos para 332 trabajadores ha recuperado $128.796 en pagos atrasados y compensación por daños.

Employer: El Guerrero Mexican Grill Inc.

Investigation site: 9727 66th St. N., Pinellas Park, FL 33781

YUMA, AZ – A federal investigation that found the franchise operator of seven Yuma McDonald’s locations denied full wages owed to 332 workers has recovered $128,796 in back wages and liquidated damages for them.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the award of more than $57 million in grants to organizations that help veterans experiencing homelessness find meaningful employment and assist them in overcoming barriers to transition back successfully into the workforce.

Date of action:                       May 10, 2022

Type of action:                       Stipulated Settlement Agreement

Participant:   Wieland Metal Services LLC. Warwick, Rhode Island.

Employer:                              Sewer Viewer Inc.

Investigation site:                 2190 Andrea Lane, Fort Myers, FL 33912

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the award of a $2.5 million grant to Development Alternatives Inc. to improve working conditions in Southeast Asia by countering forced labor and abusive working conditions in fishing.

GREELEY, CO – Four JBS Foods USA subsidiaries and affiliates have agreed to assemble a team of company and third-party experts to develop and implement an infectious disease preparedness plan for seven of its meat processing facilities to protect its workers.  

Employer name:                    Antonio’s Mexican Restaurant Weatherford Inc.

                                                        (operating as Antonio’s Homestyle Cooking)

HONOLULU – A federal investigation has recovered $33,399 in back wages and liquidated damages for 14 underpaid workers of an Oahu tour operator who denied crew members on a company tour boat their overtime wages.

SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Department of Labor will hold an online listening session for West Coast employees, employers and other stakeholders on June 3, 2022, on possible revisions to the regulations that enforce the Fair Labor Standards Act’s minimum wage and overtime exemptions for executive, administrative and professional employees.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced that the Native American Employment and Training Council will meet on June 22 and 23, 2022 at the department’s Frances Perkins Building in Washington from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. EDT.

In the week ending May 21, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 210,000, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 218,000. The 4-week moving average was 206,750, an increase of 7,250 from the previous week's unrevised average of 199,500.