Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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NEW YORK -- La Fonda Antioquena Restaurant and Garden of George, two commonly owned restaurants in Astoria, Queens, New York, have paid 62 low-wage employees a total of $150,563.79 in minimum wage and overtime back wages following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.

According to Philip Jacobson, the agency’s New York City district director, the employer claimed to be unaware of the minimum wage and overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and paid employees a flat daily rate regardless of the number of hours they worked.

As a result of its investigation, the Wage and Hour Division recovered a total of $7,718.70 in minimum wage back pay for eight tipped employees of La Fonda. That restaurant also was required to pay $103,651.82 in overtime back wages to 25 employees. Garden of George was found to owe 37 employees a total of $39,193.27 in overtime back wages.

“We are committed,” said Jacobson, “to ensuring that employees, especially low-wage workers as was the case here, are properly paid for all the hours they work.”

The FLSA requires that employees be paid at least the applicable 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.

Once informed of the minimum wage and overtime violations, spanning the period from Oct. 3, 2002 to Oct. 13, 2004, management officials of both restaurants agreed to pay employees the back wages they were due and to come into full compliance with the FLSA in the future.

The Wage and Hour Division has been unable to locate eight former La Fonda employees due back wages and is seeking 18 former Garden of George workers. “I would encourage these workers to call my office at 212-264-8185 to make sure they receive the back wages they are owed,” said Jacobson, noting that the last known addresses for most were in Queens.

Information on the requirements of the FLSA may be obtained by calling the department’s toll-free help line at 1-866-4USWAGE (1-866-487-9243) or through the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.

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