Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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DALLAS -- J. Reynolds and Co. Inc. has paid $129,354 in back wages to 113 current and former roofing and construction workers after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation found the employees had not been properly paid as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

An investigation by the Wage and Hour Division’s Dallas District Office, covering the period between Oct.18, 2004, and Oct. 17, 2006, determined that J. Reynolds and Co. failed to pay its employees overtime and to keep accurate records.

“All employees are entitled to be paid the wages they have rightfully earned,” said Cynthia Watson, the Wage and Hour Division’s regional administrator in the Southwest. “The employer failed to pay workers overtime for some travel hours between jobs beyond the 40 hours they already had worked in a week.”

The company also has agreed to continued compliance with the law.

The FLSA requires that covered employees be paid the federal minimum wage for all hours worked, plus time and one-half their regular rates of pay for hours worked over 40 per week. Time spent by an employee in travel as part of his or her principal activity, such as travel from one job site to another during the workday, is work time and must be counted as such. Under this law, employers must also maintain accurate time and payroll records.

The Wage and Hour Division concluded 31,987 compliance actions and recovered more than $171 million in back wages for more than 246,000 employees in fiscal year 2006. Back-wage collections last year represent a 30 percent increase over back wages collected in fiscal year 2001. The number of workers receiving back wages has increased by 14 percent since fiscal year 2001.

For more information about the FLSA, call the U.S. Department of Labor’s toll-free help line at (866) 4US-WAGE (487-9243) or the Wage and Hour Division’s Dallas District Office at (817) 861-2150 or (817) 261-4371 (metro toll-free). Information is also available on the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.

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U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audio tape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at (202) 693-7828 or TTY (202) 693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America’s employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/compliance.