The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) plans to host a summit on March 23 to educate the healthcare industry on wage laws and to ensure that healthcare workers receive proper pay and protections.
The DOL’s Chicago office said in a news release that the Midwest Care Workers Summit 2022 webinar will occur from 9 to 11 a.m. on March 23. The event will combine industry officials from Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin for a discussion about issues affecting federal labor law compliance in the Midwest region.
“We want to hear directly from stakeholders in the healthcare industry about what the Wage and Hour Division can do to enhance their understanding of federal wages laws, provide resources, and ensure essential healthcare workers are receiving the wages they are due,” Michael Lazzeri, Wage and Hour regional administrator, said in the release. “The healthcare industry has faced relentless challenges throughout the pandemic, and the Wage and Hour Division is committed to taking better take care of those who take care of us.”
The Wage and Hour Division recovered more than $22.7 million for healthcare workers in the Midwest from 2019 to 2021 for violations of worker protections under the Fair Labor Standards Act, according to the release.
The division has also taken steps to increase communication between healthcare employers, workers, and the Labor Department. It has conducted what it calls “listening sessions” with more than 500 stakeholders in 50 cities across the U.S., according to the release.
