The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York has ordered Casa Concrete Inc., a provider of concrete services, and its officers, Alice Fernandes and Manuel Fernandes, to pay $412,000 in back wages and liquidated damages to 20 employees for violating the overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The consent judgment also prohibits the defendants from retaliating against, or soliciting repayment of recovered wages from the employees.
Investigators found that Casa Concrete—based in Selden, New York—typically paid employees by check for their first 40 hours of work, but paid them in cash at a straight time—or lower—rates for any hours they worked beyond 40 per workweek. The company also failed to pay employees for time spent working in its Long Island yard and traveling to and from the yard to job sites. In addition, Casa Concrete failed to keep required records of employees’ work hours, rates of pay, and total wages paid.
Under the FLSA, employees are entitled to receive all of the wages they have legally earned for all the hours that they have worked. Employees with questions about the FLSA are encouraged to reach out to experienced FLSA attorneys for help.
Experienced FLSA attorneys will use all tools at their disposal—including litigation when necessary—to ensure that workers are not exploited and employers don’t gain an unfair advantage over their competitors by breaking the law.
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