WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao announced today that George's Processing Inc. has agreed to pay $1,235,000 in back wages to 5,482 current and former employees of its Cassville, Mo., poultry processing plant for uncompensated overtime hours. The employees were not paid for time spent putting on (donning) and taking off (doffing) protective clothing and other gear, and walking to and from the changing area to their work stations. The judgment was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri in Springfield.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Compass Bank, headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., has agreed to pay 2,961 employees $1,036,236 in back overtime wages after an investigation by the U.S. Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division determined the company had violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WASHINGTON — Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao this week announced that "Americans with Disabilities: Ready for the Global Workforce" will be the official theme for October's National Disability Employment Awareness Month, which is celebrated nationwide.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

San Francisco, California - The U.S. Department of Labor will hold free workshops May 16 to help employers and pension plan administrators better comply with federal pension law. The workshops will be held at the Sacramento Federal Building, 2800 Cottage Way.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Cincinnati, Ohio - The federal district court in Indianapolis has granted a default judgment to the U.S. Department of Labor, which allows the government to restore retirement savings funds and distribute benefits owed to former workers of T&J Fixturing and Contracting Inc. of Franklin, Indiana, according to the department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA).

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Chicago, Illinois - The U.S. Department of Labor has sued the officers of Systems Transport Inc., Elk Grove Village, Illinois, to restore losses suffered by the company’s 401(k) plan when they allegedly failed to remit employee contributions, used plan assets for general company expenses, and failed to administer the plan.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao today urged corporations, small businesses, non-profit organizations and individuals who have demonstrated exemplary and innovative efforts in enhancing employments opportunities for workers with disabilities to apply for the 2006 New Freedom Initiative award. Nominations must be submitted by May 31.

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San Francisco, California - The former owner of a Fresno-based company that provided services to the employee benefit plans of more than 50 California employers has been ordered to pay $316,770 in restitution, and sentenced to 240 days home detention and 60 months probation for mail fraud.

WASHINGTON — For their efforts to promote equal employment opportunity, seven companies and organizations were honored today by the U.S. Department of Labor at an annual awards ceremony hosted by the department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP).

Three types of awards — the Secretary of Labor's Opportunity Award, Exemplary Voluntary Efforts Award, and Exemplary Public Interest Contribution Award — were presented to recognize innovative workplace programs and initiatives that increase equal employment opportunity for the American workforce.

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Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Lomik Construction Corporation, Delmont, Pennsylvania, and its president, Michael Rizzi, for violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

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

Columbus, Ohio - The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit in federal district court against Clifford D. Simms, president and owner of Advanced Gear Technology, Columbus, Ohio, seeking to recover funds he owes to the company’s SIMPLE IRA plan.

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

Columbus, Ohio - The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit in federal district court against Clifford D. Simms, president and owner of Advanced Gear Technology, Columbus, Ohio, seeking to recover funds he owes to the company’s SIMPLE IRA plan.

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

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

Minneapolis, Minnesota - The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Falcon Communications Group Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota, and its owner to recover employee contributions that they failed to forward to the workers’ SIMPLE IRA plan.

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

Chicago, Illinois - The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Robert M. Beevers, owner of Pre-Press Graphics Company, Chicago, for failing to forward employee contributions to the company’s pension plan and to segregate plan contributions from the general operating assets of the company, which conducted business under the name of R&B Group.

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

Boston, Massachusetts - A health law compliance assistance seminar, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) and the State of Connecticut Insurance Department, will take place May 24-25 in Hartford, Connecticut, at the Hilton Hartford.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) today announced the publication of the fifth edition of the Service Contract Act (SCA) Directory of Occupations.

The directory, a list of occupations most often included in SCA wage determinations, is a valuable tool that standardizes agency requests for wage determinations and provides definitive guidance for contractors to determine how employees working on a contract should be classified and paid.

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

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

Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the publication of final rules and a class exemption that allow financial institutions to take responsibility for abandoned 401(k) plans and distribute the plans’ assets to covered workers and their families. The department estimates that 1,650 401(k) plans, covering 33,000 workers, are abandoned by their sponsors each year.

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

Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) regional office in Philadelphia will hold a seminar May 18 to assist employers, pension plan administrators and other benefit professionals comply with federal employee benefits law. The seminar will run from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and again from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the NOAA Science Center, 1301 East West Highway in Silver Spring, Maryland.