WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor announced today over $20.4 million in contract awards to 14 national industry intermediaries and national equity partners to expand apprenticeship opportunities across the U.S.

CONWAY, Ark. – Landing a job that pays an average of $50,000 a year with a household name in the information technology industry is something to make any worker proud. It was an opportunity denied allegedly to more than 500 job applicants at the Hewlett-Packard Co. in Conway, as the company failed to provide equal opportunity for workers of all races and ethnicities to compete for well-paid professional positions.

HARTFORD, Conn. – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued a Bridgeport nursing home and its chief officer alleging that they diverted millions of dollars from the company’s retirement plan improperly to a religious corporation and to themselves. 

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez issued the following statement on the filing of lawsuits by a group of states, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other organizations in the Eastern District of Texas challenging the update to the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime rules for white-collar, salaried workers:

BOLIVAR, Ohio – One of the nation’s largest discount retailers continues to ignore federal workplace safety inspectors who have found repeated instances where the company endangers workers and customers alike by blocking exit routes with stacked merchandise.

Date of Action: Sept. 16, 2016

Type of Action: Complaint

Name of Defendants: Homestead Physicians P.A.
Lorn Leitman
Homestead Physicians P.A. 401(k) Plan

Employer name: Koch Foods of Mississippi LLC

Inspection site: 108 Morris Tullos Drive
Morton, Mississippi 39117    

Citations issued: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued citations to the poultry processing producer on Sept. 16, 2016, for nine serious safety violations.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor has announced a two-month extension of the comment period on the Form 5500 Modernization Proposals.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor announced today an investment of $6.4 million in grants to provide currently and formerly incarcerated individuals with important jobs skills and resources by establishing additional American Job Centers inside correctional facilities, and create an online clearinghouse – in partnership with the U.S. Department of Justice – to make information needed to expunge criminal records more readily available to further remove barriers to employment.

Employer name: U.S. Postal Service
1720 Market St.
St. Louis, Missouri

Citations issued: Sept. 13, 2016

Investigation findings: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s St. Louis Area Office has cited the U.S. Postal Service’s vehicle maintenance facility for one repeated and two serious safety violations.

Employer name: Wayne Lumber and Mulch Inc.

Inspection site: 8630 Route 152, Wayne, West Virginia      

Citations issued: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued the company three willful, nine repeat, 12 serious and three other-than-serious violations on Sept. 2, 2016.

Participants: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s El Paso and Lubbock Area Offices, Permian Basin Service, Transmission, Exploration and Production Safety Network

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy today announced a total of $9,286,909 in continued funding for organizations that develop models, provide technical assistance and share best practices to improve employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

In the week ending September 10, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 260,000, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 259,000. The 4-week moving average was 260,750, a decrease of 500 from the previous week's unrevised average of 261,250.

WASHINGTON – Despite their ability to occupy a variety of jobs, people with disabilities only account for 19.8 percent of the workforce, have more than double the unemployment rate compared to the general population and continue to face barriers finding work. To improve employment opportunities for adults and youth with disabilities, the U.S. Department of Labor today announced grants totaling $14.9 million as part of the Disability Employment Initiative to six states.

Employer name: Birdsboro Kosher Farms Corp.

Inspection site: 1100 Lincoln Road, Birdsboro, Pennsylvania          

Citations issued: On Sept. 2, 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued citations to the employer for two willful and eight serious safety and health violations.

Employer name: Chris Sawdo Construction LLC

Inspection sites: 548 Colorado Springs Way, St. Augustine, Florida 32092
478 Heron Landing Road, St. Johns, Florida 32259

Citations issued: OSHA issued citations to the employer on Sept. 09, 2016.  

Employer name: Cityview Construction Corp.
302 Main St.
Paterson, New Jersey

Inspection site: 520 Belleville Ave.
Belleville, New Jersey

Citations issued: On Aug. 19, 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued the company one willful violation, one other-than-serious violation and 14 serious violations.

READING, Pa. – In the last several months, workers at a Reading facility for children and youth in crisis became victims in at least 10 incidents of workplace violence, federal workplace safety and health inspectors have found.

In one incident, a worker suffered serious injuries after being kicked twice in the face, head and neck by one of the facility’s residents.

Participants: U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division
Oklahoma Employment Security Commission