The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $45,732 in back wages and damages for 14 workers who were denied overtime pay by El Molino Taqueria in Walnut Creek, California. An investigation by the Department's Wage and Hour Division revealed that the restaurant owner did not compensate employees for hours worked over 40 in a workweek, which is a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The employer was found to have willfully paid overtime hours at straight-time rates and in cash.
The case came to light following a call to the Employment, Education, and Outreach helpline operated by Empleo, an alliance of government agencies, consulates, and non-profit organizations dedicated to promoting labor rights awareness among immigrant communities across multiple states.
The Department of Labor recovered $22,866 in overtime and minimum wages for 14 employees and an additional $22,866 in liquidated damages. Furthermore, civil money penalties amounting to $2,058 were assessed due to the willful nature of the violations.
"Calls to the Empleo helpline have enabled the U.S. Department of Labor to recover millions in unpaid wages for thousands of workers," said Wage and Hour Division District Director Francisco Ocampo in San Jose, California. "For more than 20 years, the Empleo program has played a vital role helping workers and investigators uncover employers’ labor violations in many different industries, including the restaurant business, where workers are deprived of their full wages far too often."
Workers can use the division’s Workers Owed Wages search tool to determine if they are owed back wages collected by the division. Employers and workers can contact the Wage and Hour Division for assistance at its toll-free number, 1-866-4-US-WAGE. More information about the Wage and Hour Division is available online, including resources such as the agency’s restaurants compliance assistance toolkit and an overview of FLSA protections for restaurant workers. Both workers and employers can help ensure accurate tracking of hours worked and pay by downloading the department’s Android and iOS Timesheet App available in English or Spanish.
