Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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SAN FRANCISCO -- Two Santa Ana-area companies have paid approximately $100,000 apiece in back wages to employees to settle charges that they violated federal wage and hour rules, U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao announced today.

Under the terms of an administrative settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor, Santa Ana-based Aspen Landscaping has paid $100,489 to 32 employees at the Main office location, 1927 East Deere Ave. A federal investigation revealed that the company failed to pay employees for work time spent preparing and loading vehicles in the morning and while driving to and from the job site.

Orange-based Danny Letner, Inc., operators of Letner Roofing and Ramish Supply, Inc., at 1490 N. Glassell, paid $96,737 in back wages to 140 employees. According to investigators, the company violated the overtime pay provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act by failing to pay employees at least one and one-half times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked in excess of forty within a forty hour work week.

"The highest priority of the Department of Labor is to aggressively protect the basic rights of workers," said Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao, "Work time is paid time, and 'overtime' work pays more. The law is clear."

Both companies have completed the back wage payments as agreed. The payments compensate employees for work performed during the two-year period ending in April 2002. As part of the two settlement agreements, both firms have revised their pay procedures to include all work hours, and to insure that employees who work more than 40 hours in a seven-day workweek receive higher overtime pay.

The Santa Ana area office of the Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division conducted both investigations. For more information about the federal wage and hour or child labor laws, call the Department of Labor's toll-free help line at 1-866-4USWAGE (1-866-487-9243) or contact the Orange Area Office at (714) 621 1650. Information is also available on the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.

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U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audio tape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at (202) 693-7828 or TTY (202) 693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America’s employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/compliance.