Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division is seeking 54 garment workers from China due more than $152,000 in back wages. The workers were formerly employed by defunct Saipan-based garment contractor Sun Mei Corp.

“These workers earned this money but never received payment,” said George Friday Jr., regional administrator in San Francisco for the Wage and Hour Division. “We now have the funds to pay them but do not have current addresses for many people. Our goal is to reach every former garment worker due back wages.”

An investigation of the employer’s pay records by the Wage and Hour Division found Sun Mei had failed to pay overtime wages between Dec. 14, 2004, and May 29, 2005. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires covered employees be paid one and one-half times their regular pay rate for hours worked over 40 per week.

Sun Mei was a subcontractor of Hansae (Saipan) Mfg. Inc. at the time the violations occurred. The workers produced apparel for Jones Apparel Inc. of Bristol, Pa.; American Eagle Outfitters Inc. of Warrendale, Pa.; and Lerner and The Limited, both headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. These manufacturers cooperated with the U.S. Labor Department, stepping up to provide the funds to cover the unpaid back wages.

Staff at the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Department of Labor is assisting the U.S. Labor Department in distributing back wage checks. Former Sun Mei workers should contact Joseph Ngiratraked at the Enforcement Unit of the CNMI Department of Labor to determine if they are eligible to receive back wages from the U.S. Labor Department and, if so, to arrange to pick up their checks. Ngiratraked can be contacted in person or at (670) 236-0999.

The Wage and Hour Division recovered more than $171 million in back wages for more than 246,000 workers and assessed nearly $7.9 million in civil money penalties in federal fiscal year 2006. For general information about the FLSA, call the U.S. Department of Labor’s toll-free helpline at (866) 4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available on the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.

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