October 11, 2023

Investigation recovers $75K for workers employed by operator of Subway franchise locations in Burien, Renton, SeaTac, Tukwila

Employer:      JRKT Enterprises LLC, operating as Subway

                        12835 Bel-Red Road, Suite 100

October 11, 2023

US Department of Labor cites Massachusetts alloys manufacturer for failing to protect employees against exposure to toxic beryllium

ANDOVER, MA – A Wilmington fabricator of advanced alloys failed to adequately protect its employees against exposure to the toxic substance beryllium adequately, a U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspection has revealed. 

October 10, 2023

US Department of Labor seeks court orders to force business operators in Illinois, Minnesota to cooperate with subpoenas in wage investigations 

CHICAGO – After failing to satisfy repeated requests to cooperate with investigators with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, two business operators in Illinois and Minnesota must now answer to federal courts in Chicago and Minneapolis after the department filed petitions to enforce its administrative subpoenas for records.

October 10, 2023

Statement by Undersecretary of Labor for International Affairs Thea Lee on closure of auto parts facility accused of labor rights violations at Piedras Negras plant in Mexico

WASHINGTON – Deputy Undersecretary of Labor for International Affairs Thea Lee made the following statement today upon the closure of the VU Manufacturas facility in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico:

October 10, 2023

National food manufacturer agrees to pay $140K in penalties after federal investigation finds 11 teens employed illegally in Minnesota meat snack plant

CHANDLER, MN – A national food manufacturer paid $140,164 in civil money penalties after the U.S. Department of Labor found the company employed at least 11 children – nine of whom operated hazardous machinery – at its meatpacking and food processing facility in Chandler, Minnesota.

October 6, 2023

US Department of Labor investigations find South Florida contractors put roofing workers’ safety at risk; now face nearly $174K in penalties

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL – For roofing workers without required fall protection, one wrong or unsteady step can lead to serious, debilitating injuries or worse, a danger to which two Florida contractors exposed 12 workers at a Davie worksite in April 2023. 

October 6, 2023

Federal court enforces US Department of Labor subpoena seeking documents to investigate Starbucks Corp.’s response to worker organizing campaigns

SEATTLE A federal court in Seattle has ruled that Starbucks Corp. must comply with a U.S. Department of Labor administrative subpoena that seeks documents needed in an investigation by the department’s Office of Labor-Management Standards into money spent by the company related to worker organizing campaigns. The court has given the company 14 days to provide the documents.

October 6, 2023

Biden-Harris administration scales program to expand equal opportunity, diversity in construction trades for jobs on large infrastructure projects

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor announced today the designation of additional federally funded construction projects for participation in the Mega Construction Project Program. 

October 6, 2023

Statement by US Secretary of Labor Su on September jobs report

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Julie A. Su issued the following statement on the September 2023 Employment Situation report:

October 5, 2023

Department of Labor reaches settlement with New York insurer, 3rd-party health plan administrator to end ‘cross-plan offsetting’ practice

NEW YORK – The U.S. Department of Labor has entered into a settlement agreement with EmblemHealth Inc., a New York-based insurer and third-party administrator of employment-based group health plans governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, resolving claims that Emblem breached its fiduciary duties under federal law by engaging in a practice known as “cross-plan offsetting.”

October 5, 2023

Federal investigation finds RM Palmer did not evacuate West Reading candy plant before gas leak explosion fatally injured 7 workers

READING, PA – The U.S. Department of Labor has found a well-known Pennsylvania candy maker failed to evacuate employees after some reported smelling gas before a March 2023 explosion that killed seven workers at the company’s West Reading facility.

October 5, 2023

Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report

In the week ending September 30, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 207,000, an increase of 2,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 204,000 to 205,000. The 4-week moving average was 208,750, a decrease of 2,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 211,000 to 211,250.

October 4, 2023

US Department of Labor to host annual conference for nation’s mine safety, health trainers at National Mine Health and Safety Academy, Oct. 10-12

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor announced today that its Mine Safety and Health Administration is holding its annual Training Resources Applied to Mining conference in Beaver, West Virginia, from Oct. 10 to 12.

October 3, 2023

Federal court orders former Boise dog daycare facility, owner to pay $50K to two employees fired after reporting COVID-19 safety concerns

BOISE, ID ‒ The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment in federal court requiring a Boise dog daycare facility and its former owner to pay $50,000 in general and punitive damages for terminating two employees unlawfully for raising workplace safety concerns about being exposed to the risk of the coronavirus amid the pandemic in June 2020.

October 3, 2023

US Department of Labor cites Wisconsin Dollar General for electrical hazards

Employer:                                          Dolgencorp LLC, operating as Dollar General

404 East Pioneer St.

Crandon, Wisconsin 54520

October 3, 2023

US Department of Labor settlement agreement affirms citations issued to New Jersey contractor that exposed workers to energized power lines

WAYNE, NJ – The U.S. Department of Labor has entered into a settlement agreement with a New Jersey building contractor who allowed their subcontractors’ employees to work in close proximity to high-voltage power lines at a Paterson work site in 2021 and 2022.

October 2, 2023

US Department of Labor resolves alleged hiring discrimination found in routine evaluation of national research center hiring practices

CHICAGO – An independent research center affiliated with the University of Chicago will pay $95,000 in back wages and interest to 107 Asian applicants to resolve alleged hiring discrimination found in a U.S. Department of Labor investigation.

October 2, 2023

US Department of Labor announces $7.5M award for continued support for temporary employment, workforce training after Hurricane Ian

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the incremental award of $7.5 million in funding to support continued disaster-relief employment and workforce training for eligible residents in Florida as the state continues to recover following Hurricane Ian. 

September 29, 2023

US Department of Labor reaches settlement with United of Omaha Life Insurance Co. to reform its evidence of insurability practices

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a settlement with United of Omaha Life Insurance Co. that requires the company to revise how it administers its requirement that participants in employer-sponsored life insurance plans provide proof of good health — referred to as evidence of insurability — before obtaining coverage in certain instances.