Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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UPPER SANDUSKY, Ohio -- The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $64,877 in back wages for 465 low-wage workers employed by M-TEK Inc. Ohio Division in Upper Sandusky after an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division determined the company had violated the overtime pay provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

“The department is committed to ensuring that all workers receive all wages that they have earned,” said George Victory, director of the Wage and Hour Division’s district office in Columbus, Ohio.

The investigation covered the period from April 2005 to April 2007. It established that M-TEK Inc., a manufacturer of automotive parts, was rounding the employees’ quitting time to the nearest 15 minutes to the employer’s benefit and did not include attendance bonuses in the regular rate of pay for overtime purposes.

The FLSA requires covered nonexempt employees to be paid the federal minimum wage for all hours worked and time and one-half their regular rates of pay for hours worked more than 40 in a week. An employer may round employee time to the nearest quarter hour but may violate the FLSA minimum wage and overtime pay requirements if the employer always rounds down. The FLSA provides that non-discretionary bonuses must be included in the regular rate of pay, which include those bonuses that are announced to employees to encourage them to work more steadily, rapidly or efficiently, and bonuses designed to encourage employees to remain with the enterprise. Employers must also maintain accurate time and payroll records.

Effective July 24, 2007, the federal minimum wage for covered nonexempt employees will be $5.85 per hour. The minimum wage will increase to $6.55 per hour effective July 24, 2008, and to $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009.

For more information, call the 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. Information about the current exemption for white collar executive, administrative and professional employees can be found on the Internet at http://www.dol.gov/fairpay.

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