Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

Printer-Friendly Version

Press Releases

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. -- The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a legal action in federal district court in Detroit against Barlen Contracting Inc., a Farmington Hills landscape construction and snow removal business, for ongoing alleged violations of the minimum wage and overtime pay provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

The lawsuit also names business owner Bart Wingblad and seeks payment of back wages owed to employees plus an equal amount as liquidated damages. The department’s Wage and Hour Division began an investigation in December 2006 that found the business fails to pay the federal minimum wage and to pay employees time and one-half for all hours worked in excess of 40 per week.

The Labor Department is alleging that the company treated many of its workers as independent contractors rather than employees for compensation purposes, denying them their overtime pay. In a separate action, the department has assessed civil money penalties totaling $13,282 for repeat violations initially identified during a previous investigation.

The FLSA requires 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 over 40 in a week unless an employee is exempt from overtime. For purposes of the FLSA, there are a number of factors for determining whether an individual is an independent contractor or an employee. Under the law, employers must also maintain accurate time and payroll records. The current federal minimum wage is $5.85 per hour.

The Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division concluded 30,467 compliance actions and recovered a record $220 million in back wages for more than 341,000 employees in fiscal year 2007. Back-wage collections in fiscal year 2007 represent a 67 percent increase over back wages collected in fiscal year 2001. The number of workers receiving back wages has increased by 58 percent since fiscal year 2001.

For more information, call the 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.

Chao v. Barlen Contracting Inc.

Civil Action Number: 2:08-cv-10146

###

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.