Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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BOSTON -- Randolph, Mass.-based Zeppy’s Bagel Bakery LLC and owner Jeffrey Chizmas have agreed to pay 10 employees $30,000 in back wages to resolve a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division alleging violations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

An investigation by the Wage and Hour Division’s Boston District Office found that these employees had worked more than 40 hours in many workweeks during the period between April 8, 2004, and Dec. 31, 2005, without being properly compensated for the overtime hours worked. The department filed suit last year in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts after the employer refused to resolve the matter administratively.

The FLSA requires that employees be paid at least the applicable federal minimum wage and time and one-half their regular rate of pay for hours worked over 40 per week. It also requires employers to keep accurate records of employees’ wages, hours and other conditions of employment.

“Our legal action demonstrates that the Labor Department is quite serious about enforcing the FLSA and ensuring that employees, particularly those employed in low-wage industries, are always properly paid for all of the hours they work,” said George Rioux, director of the Wage and Hour Division’s Boston office.

A consent judgment, signed by U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns on March 20, orders the defendants to come into full compliance with the requirements of the FLSA and to pay the $30,000 in back wages.

The Labor Department’s Boston Regional Solicitor’s Office handled this litigation.

For more information about the requirements of the FLSA, call the U.S. Department of Labor’s toll-free help line at (866) 4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available on the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.

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