February 4, 2022

Statement by US Secretary of Labor Walsh on January Jobs Report

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh issued the following statement on the January 2022 Employment Situation Report:

February 4, 2022

US Department of Labor investigation of Bowling Green Home Instead operator reveals systemic wage violations in Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee

BOWLING GREEN, KY – What started as an investigation of a single Bowling Green-based caregiving provider became a sweeping review of six other franchise locations across three states when investigators uncovered systemic violations by the employer.

February 3, 2022

Investigation into worker’s fatal fall finds Henderson sawmill, pallet manufacturer exposed workers to willful, serious hazards

HENDERSON, TX A federal investigation into fatal injuries suffered by an 86-year-old worker at a Henderson sawmill and pallet manufacturer found the company exposed workers to hazardous energy sources and lack of machine guarding.

February 3, 2022

Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report

In the week ending January 29, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 238,000, a decrease of 23,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 260,000 to 261,000. The 4-week moving average was 255,000, an increase of 7,750 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 247,000 to 247,250.

February 2, 2022

US Department of Labor investigation finds methylene chloride, other workplace hazards at Bergen County manufacturing facility

Employer name: Sinclair & Rush Inc.

Employer address: 640 Dell Road, Carlstadt, New Jersey 07072

Citations issued: On Jan. 19, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued 10 serious and one other-than-serious safety and health citations.

February 1, 2022

US Department of Labor obtains judgment after investigation finds Michigan company failed to forward retirement contributions

DETROIT – A federal judge has signed a consent order and judgment against a Madison Heights company and ordered fiduciaries of the company’s retirement plan to restore $50,764 in employee payroll-deducted retirement contributions and lost opportunity costs to the plan, and pay a $10,153 penalty for violating the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

February 1, 2022

US Department of Labor recovers $23K in back wages for 8 workers denied their full wages by Pago Pago employer who violated federal law

PAGO PAGO, AS – A federal investigation recovered $23,358 in back wages for eight employees of a Pago Pago employer who failed to pay eight workers for work performed before and after their scheduled shifts. The employer required the work but failed to record the time and pay for the hours. Additionally, the employer illegally deducted meal breaks and lodging costs from worker’s pay.

February 1, 2022

Investigation recovers $97K in back wages, damages for 330 workers after US Department of Labor finds violations at 11 frozen yogurt franchise locations

SEATTLE – A federal investigation recovered $96,973 in back wages and liquidated damages from the operator of 11 frozen yogurt shops in Washington and Oregon who allowed store managers to take a portion of workers’ tips illegally, and failed to pay some workers overtime wages when they worked over 40 hours in a workweek. The employer also did not keep an accurate record of hours worked.

February 1, 2022

New Hampshire retailer pays $50,000 in punitive damages to worker terminated after asking for owed overtime wages

MANCHESTER, NH A U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation has determined Smokers Haven Inc. and owner Brett Scott violated the anti-retaliation, overtime and recordkeeping requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act

January 31, 2022

Hawaii seafood trader pays $117K in back wages, damages to 33 employees after US Department of Labor finds employer denied them overtime wages

HONOLULU – The U.S. Department of Labor recovered $117,718 in back wages and liquidated damages to 33 workers after their employer in Hawaii recklessly denied them overtime wages they earned.

January 31, 2022

St. Johns construction contractor fined for lying to US Department of Labor investigators during workplace inspection

JACKSONVILLE, FL – A federal court assessed a $50,000 penalty to a north Florida construction contractor for attempting to deceive federal workplace safety investigators.

January 31, 2022

Federal court orders Pennsylvania home care agency to pay more than $2.8M in back wages, damages to 491 workers; $250K in civil penalties for wage violations

ARDMORE, PA – A federal court in Pennsylvania has ordered an Ardmore employer who denied more than $1.4 million in wages to hundreds of home care workers in the Philadelphia area to pay its workers more than $2.8 million in back wages and liquidated damages.

January 31, 2022

US Department of Labor now accepting applications for 2022 HIRE Vets Medallion Awards

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor announced today that it is accepting applications for the 2022 HIRE Vets Medallion Award. The award is presented annually to employers that meet standards for excellence in the recruitment, hiring and retention of America’s military veterans.

January 31, 2022

US Department of Labor awards $1.8M in funding for employment, training services to combat New York’s opioid crisis

WASHINGTON Fatal overdoses in New York have nearly tripled in the last decade, with nearly 85 percent of them linked to controlled substances, including opioids. Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates fatal opioid overdoses kill 91 people each day in the U.S.

January 31, 2022

US Department of Labor announces availability of $15M in state grants to improve delivery of benefits, services by state unemployment systems

WASHINGTON – At the height of the pandemic, displaced workers flooded state unemployment insurance systems across the nation with requests for assistance and benefits, exposing many antiquated systems and their vulnerabilities.

January 31, 2022

US Department of Labor awards $2.4M in funding for employment, training services to combat West Virginia’s opioid crisis

WASHINGTON – In the last decade, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that the number of fatal overdoses in West Virginia has nearly tripled, nearly 85 percent of them linked to controlled substances including opioids. Nationally, the CDC estimates 91 of the more than 140 Americans who die each day from drug overdose fall victim to opioids.

January 31, 2022

US Department of Labor awards $2M in funding to provide employment, training services to combat Maine’s opioid crisis

WASHINGTON – With opioid-related overdoses linked to nearly 2,700 deaths in Maine between 2010 and 2019, and tens of thousands of Maine residents living with chronic addiction, opioid usage remains a serious health emergency there.

January 27, 2022

Court orders Norfolk staffing agency to pay more than $7.2M in back wages, damages to 1,105 aides, nurses after federal investigation, litigation

NORFOLK, VA – A federal court in Virginia has entered a judgment ordering a Norfolk-based medical staffing agency, which intentionally violated federal laws and denied 1,105 certified nursing aides, licensed practical nurses and registered nurses their rightfully earned overtime wages, to pay more than $7.2 million in back wages and liquidated damages.