The U.S. Department of Labor announced on March 11 that it has reached a settlement agreement with Expresso Forwarding Inc. and its affiliate, Agencia Aduanal Esquer Luken S.C., to recover more than $1 million in back wages and damages for 24 warehouse workers in Calexico, California.
A federal investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division found that the company denied minimum wage and overtime pay to employees, paying some as little as $2.03 per hour in Mexican pesos. The affected workers traveled from Mexico to work at the company’s U.S. warehouse, where they were not paid required overtime rates for hours worked over 40 in a workweek, which is a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
"Employers operating in the U.S. must understand that regardless of where they are headquartered, workers who perform work on this side of the border must be paid in accordance with U.S. labor laws," said Wage and Hour Division Administrator Andrew Rogers. "When a company pays wages in Mexican pesos that fall well below the U.S. minimum wage, it creates an unfair advantage over law-abiding employers and discourages U.S. workers from competing for those jobs. The Department of Labor will continue to use all legal avenues to ensure compliance in this industry." According to Rogers, after negotiations with the Office of the Solicitor, Expresso Forwarding Inc. agreed to pay $1.08 million through a payment plan scheduled from January 15, 2026, to December 15, 2026.
Over the last five years, the Wage and Hour Division has recovered more than $4.8 million in back wages for more than 3,700 warehouse workers nationwide.
The Fair Labor Standards Act requires most employees be paid overtime at time and one-half their regular rate for hours worked over 40 per week.
In related efforts to support fair labor practices and workplace equity, on August 24, 2022, the Department of Labor announced $3.4 million Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations grants administered by its Women’s Bureau and Employment and Training Administration; Phoenix, Arizona was awarded $542,358 through the Fresh Start Women’s Foundation.
Employers or workers seeking guidance can contact the division's toll-free helpline or access compliance assistance toolkits online according to the official roster page.
