News and reports from the Department of Labor.

Federal safety inspectors became aware that a 31-year-old employee of a Chicago countertop manufacturer needed a double lung transplant after suffering accelerated silicosis, an incurable lung disease. The U.S. Department of Labor immediately alerted the company of the potential imminent danger, and an inspection by the department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) found workers exposed to silica levels up to six times greater than permissible limits.

The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $61,646 for 140 workers following investigations into three restaurants in Lamesa and Lubbock, Texas. The investigations revealed that these establishments had illegally withheld tips from their employees.

The U.S. Department of Labor and the Republic of Colombia have announced that Colombia has joined the Consular Partnership Program to raise awareness among Colombians working in the U.S. about regulations protecting them in American workplaces. This announcement coincides with the beginning of Labor Rights Week.

The Department of Labor and the Office of the Trade Representative announced today the resolution of a U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) Rapid Response Labor Mechanism matter, following allegations of labor rights violations at the Volkswagen assembly plant in Puebla, Mexico.

The U.S. Department of Labor has announced an initial award of $2.8 million in dislocated worker grant funding to California. This funding is intended to support cleanup and recovery activities in eight counties following severe winter storms that occurred between January 31, 2024, and February 9, 2024.

The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement’s Interagency Labor Committee for Monitoring and Enforcement has requested that the government of Mexico conduct a review based on its finding of a denial of workers’ rights at the Pirelli Neumáticos rubber tire manufacturing facility in Silao, Guanajuato.

The U.S. Department of Labor has announced an initial award exceeding $1.1 million in emergency grant funding to support employment and training initiatives for workers involved in cleanup and recovery activities following severe storms in north and south Florida during May and June 2024. These storms resulted in five tornadoes and flooding across 17 counties.

U.S. Department of Labor officials and representatives from the Mexican Embassy and other diplomatic missions convened today to inaugurate Labor Rights Week 2024, emphasizing migrant workers' rights and the department's efforts to safeguard these rights.

The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $124,670 in back wages and damages for 84 workers at Swahili Village Bar and Grill in Newark, New Jersey. The Wage and Hour Division's investigation revealed that the restaurant failed to pay overtime to servers, cooks, and bussers who worked more than 40 hours per week, violating the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

The U.S. Department of Labor has secured a consent judgment to recover $1.3 million in back wages, withheld tips, and liquidated damages for 51 workers employed by a Wilkes-Barre restaurant and its owner. The court's decision follows an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division and extensive litigation by the Office of the Solicitor, which identified several violations of federal wage regulations by La Tolteca Wilkes-Barre Inc., operator of La Tolteca Authentic Mexican Restaurant, and owner Carlos De Leon.

EVANSVILLE, IN – The U.S. Department of Labor has secured a consent order and judgment mandating an Evansville diner owner and his restaurant to pay $390,000 in back wages and liquidated damages to 44 employees. This resolution follows litigation prompted by a department investigation that revealed the restaurant operated an invalid tip pool, denied workers overtime pay, and retaliated against employees who cooperated with investigators.

The U.S. Department of Labor has mandated the Southlake location of a national childcare provider to reinstate an employee and compensate them with $43,295 in back wages and damages. The employee was terminated after reporting concerns about unsanitary and unsafe conditions in the facility’s kitchen to Texas health officials.

The U.S. Department of Labor has announced an initial award of $2 million in emergency grant funding to Texas. This allocation aims to support employment and training for workers involved in cleanup and recovery activities across 67 counties impacted by Hurricane Beryl.

COLUMBIA, SC – The U.S. Department of Labor is encouraging employers and stakeholders in South Carolina’s highway construction industry to participate in a statewide survey to help its Wage and Hour Division establish prevailing wage rates for construction workers on federally funded and assisted construction projects.

The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $133,000 in wages and damages for 56 landscaping workers who were denied overtime by Turf Paradise Inc., a snow removal and landscaping company based in Longmont, Colorado. The Wage and Hour Division's investigation revealed that the company improperly claimed an exemption for seasonal recreational and amusement workers, leading to the failure to pay overtime.