Wage and Hour Case Nets $436,000

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has recovered nearly $436,000 in minimum wages, overtime pay, damages, and interest for 27 employees of a New York City restaurant.

The settlement resolves a lawsuit filed by the DOL in federal court against the restaurant’s parent company and two of its company officials alleging violations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The alleged violations included failing to pay employees at least the federal minimum wage, requiring employees to work more than 40 hours in many workweeks without properly compensating them for the overtime hours worked, and failing to maintain proper records of the number of hours worked by employees and the compensation they were paid.

A consent judgment, entered by the court, permanently prohibits the company from future violations of the FLSA’s minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and anti-retaliation requirements. It also orders the company to repay the award in accordance with a payment schedule. If payments are not made in a timely manner, the court will appoint a receiver with the power to seize and liquidate the company’s assets to satisfy the order.

In addition, the company has agreed to maintain a mechanical or electronic timekeeping system to accurately record employees’ hours worked and to train employees in the new system’s use as well as in their other rights under the FLSA. The employees must be paid for the time spent in training.