Four Upper Marlboro eldercare providers must pay $364,604 in back wages and liquidated damages after a Department of Labor investigation found pay practice infractions.
Investigators found the interrelated Maryland facilities Woodmore House Assisted Living, We Care Adult Day Care Services, Quality Connection Transportation and GTerryD LLC violated the Fair Labor Standards Act, according to a May 9 release.
“The employer’s theft of wages earned by 132 of its workers is a reminder of the harsh realities faced by some of the most vulnerable workers in our communities," the Department of Labor Philadelphia Regional Solicitor Oscar L. Hampton III, said in the release.
The investigation found the facilities and their owners and officers, Denson Terry, Gwen Terry and David Douglas, failed to pay appropriate overtime hours, did not pay workers for all hours worked, manually adjusted time cards to omit hours and round down worked hours, made improper payroll deductions and paid workers at straight time rates for overtime hours, the release said.
“Frontline care workers provide vital services for people who depend on them for basic living needs, yet these workers often find themselves shortchanged by their employers,” Nicholas Fiorello, the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division district director, said in the release. “In this case, the companies and their owners showed a blatant disregard for the workers’ right to receive their full wages and willfully mismanaged payroll records to evade federal requirements.”
The recovery of unpaid wages and liquidated damages for these workers reflects the department’s commitment to investigate violations and obtain appropriate compensation for the workers, Hampton said, according to the release.
