A federal judge has ordered Mariusz Lekarczyk, the owner and operator of four Chicago-area We Wash Hand Wash and Car Detail Centers, and We Wash Car Care Center Inc. to pay $799,566 in back wages and damages to 110 employees and $110,990 in penalties to the U.S. Department of Labor. This order is part of a consent judgment obtained by the department.

On September 19, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois mandated that Lekarczyk and his company pay the back wages owed by May 1, 2025, and penalties by August 1, 2025. The employer must also immediately display posters and provide information to employees about their rights under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The court’s action followed a complaint filed after an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division revealed that Lekarczyk did not pay workers overtime at time-and-a-half their regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek or keep records of payments to workers as required. Violations were found at locations in Chicago at 2042 S. Halsted St. and 4660 W. Lawrence Ave., from June 23, 2020, to June 22, 2022; and at locations in Highland Park at 2744 Skokie Valley Road and Rolling Meadows at 5600 New Wilke Road between October 21, 2020, and October 20, 2022.

The complaint alleges that Lekarczyk paid workers by check for the first 40 hours worked but paid overtime hours in cash at straight time without applying overtime rates.

The Halsted and Lawrence locations were previously investigated by the division in 2013 for similar overtime violations.

“The recovery of these rightfully earned wages will have a tremendous impact on the employees who earned them and sends a clear message to all employers that we will not tolerate an employer’s failure to pay overtime,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Tom Gauza in Chicago. “We appreciate the court’s support in the Department of Labor’s fight on behalf of workers and in holding employers legally accountable.”

“The U.S. Department of Labor will take all necessary legal actions – including recovering back wages, seeking damages, and assessing penalties – to hold employers who violate the law accountable,” said Regional Solicitor of Labor Christine Z. Heri in Chicago.

The department’s compliance guide explains employees’ rights under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

For more information about the Wage and Hour Division or if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division or need assistance filing an online complaint, visit their website or call their toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). The agency also offers a Timesheet App for iOS and Android devices available in English and Spanish to ensure accurate tracking of hours worked.

DOL v. We Wash Car Care Center Inc., d/b/a We Wash, Mariusz Lekarczyk

Civil Action No.: 1:24-cv-06259