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ESA News Release: [06/22/2005]
Contact Name: Dolline Hatchet
Phone Number: 202-693-4650
Release Number: 05-1072-NAT

Department of Labor Finds Tennessee Doctor Guilty Of Violating Temporary Foreign Worker Visa Program

Required to Pay Over $1 Million in Back Wages

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB) has ruled that 17 physicians, hired to work in rural Tennessee clinics under the Immigration and Nationality Act's H-1B visa program, are due over $1 million in back wages. The ARB also upheld the assessment of over $100,000 in civil money penalties for “willful” violations of the law.

“The Department of Labor is committed to ensuring that workers are protected,” said Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. “As this case shows, abuse of the temporary foreign worker program will not be tolerated and violators will be aggressively pursued.”

The ARB also ruled that Dr. Mohan Kutty, corporate owner of the now-defunct medical clinics where the doctors worked, was personally liable for the back wages and civil money penalties. The review board determined that Kutty could not hide behind the clinics' corporate status to avoid liability. In addition, Kutty was ordered to reimburse the doctors for certain business expenses they incurred as a part of the visa hiring process.

The department also found that Kutty violated the statute's anti-retaliation provision by refusing to pay physicians who complained about wage violations and firing seven physicians on the same day that an investigator from the department's Wage and Hour Division arrived at the office to examine records. The ARB debarred Kutty from participating in the visa program for two years.

The H-1B visa program permits employers to temporarily hire nonimmigrants to fill specialized jobs in the United States. An employer must pay an H-1B worker at least the same wage it pays other employees who perform the same type of work or the prevailing wage in the area.

Information about the H-1B visa program's worker protection provisions may be obtained by calling the Department of Labor's toll-free helpline at 1-866-4USWAGE (1-866-487-9243). Information is also available on the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.