WASHINGTON—U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) today celebrated the 14th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

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Charleston, West Virginia - The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment permanently barring the former owners of defunct Fleshman’s Inc. of Oceana, West Virginia, from service as fiduciaries to employee benefit plans governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

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WASHINGTON—In an effort to educate mushroom growers throughout the country about minimum wage, overtime and worker health and safety, the U.S. Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) has entered into a partnership with the American Mushroom Institute (AMI).

The AMI is a national, nonprofit trade association established by mushroom growers with a total membership of approximately 400 members, including 120 mushroom farms.

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Minor was Illegally Employed to Operate a Forklift

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Labor announced today that Fisherman’s Fleet, Inc., a fish processing company located in Malden, Mass. has been ordered to pay $132,575 in fines for violations of the youth employment provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The department’s Administrative Review Board reversed an administrative law judge’s decision that had reduced the penalty by 25 percent.

WASHINGTON—U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao today announced the availability of a $2.5 million grant through her Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), which is aimed at increasing employment opportunities for people with disabilities through telework positions.

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Kansas City, Missouri - The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment and order requiring the owner of Ver-Sa-Til Associates Inc. in Chanhassen, Minnesota, to pay $6,832 as restitution for failing to forward employee contributions owed to the company’s profit sharing plan.

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Albuquerque, New Mexico - The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment and order removing the owner of Albuquerque-based J.R. Hale Contracting Company Inc. as fiduciary of the corporation's 401(k) profit sharing plan.

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“Workers Should Commit to Financial Independence for Secure Retirement”

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Cincinnati, Ohio - The U.S. Department of Labor obtained a consent judgment and order that appoints Anthony Troehler of St. Augustine, Florida, as the trustee of the retirement savings plan of Cincinnati-based CFC Interiors, Inc. The trustee will distribute the pension assets to participants and terminate the plan.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

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Chicago, Illinois - The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Chicago-based Atash Fire & Safety Equipment Co. and its 401(k) plan sponsor for failing to remit employee contributions to the plan and to secure appropriate fidelity bonding for the plan as required by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

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WASHINGTON—A three-month-old jobs program that places college students with disabilities in summer employment has already exceeded last year’s placement totals, U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine Chao announced today.

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Washington, DC - Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao met with the Advisory Council of Employee Welfare and Pension Plans to welcome the Council’s new members and discuss ways to improve the retirement security and health coverage of America’s workers.

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This Week: Michigan, Texas, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania

WASHINGTON—To ensure full employer compliance with the Department of Labor’s new overtime security rules, Department of Labor officials will be meeting with members of the human resource community this week in Michigan, Texas, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania. To date, Department of Labor officials have held over 60 presentations, forums, and briefings in over 20 states as part of an extensive compliance assistance outreach.