Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

Printer-Friendly Version

Press Releases

NEW YORK -- Stratford Management Co. Inc., a Boston-based real estate management firm operating apartment complexes in Upstate New York has agreed to pay 121 employees a total of $89,000 in back wages and damages to settle a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Labor Department alleging violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

Named in the suit, filed in June 2004 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York, were Stratford Management Co.; Andrew Gordon, individually and as president/owner; and Naomi Gordon, individually and as an owner of the company. The company and the Gordons manage apartment complexes located in Tully and Endicott, as well as two locations in Liverpool.

The suit alleged violations of the minimum wage, overtime pay and recordkeeping provisions of the FLSA. The FLSA requires that covered employees be paid at least the applicable minimum wage and one and one-half times their regular rate of pay for hours worked over 40 per week. The law also requires that accurate records of employees’ wages, hours and other conditions of employment be maintained.

A consent judgment, signed April 3 by U.S. District Judge Neal P. McCurn, prohibits the company and its owners from violating the FLSA in the future and orders them to pay $59,333 in back wages and $29,667 in liquidated damages to the affected employees. The defendants are prohibited from discriminating or retaliating against any employee for exercising his or her rights under the FLSA. The court also ordered the defendants to inform employees of their rights under the act and to post official FLSA posters where all may view them.

The defendants agreed to entry of the consent judgment without admitting any of the violations alleged in the Labor Department’s complaint.

The Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division office in Syracuse investigated this case, and the lawsuit was filed by the Labor Department’s Regional Solicitor’s Office in New York City. For more information about the requirements of the FLSA, call the Department of Labor’s toll-free help line at 1-866-4USWAGE (1-866-487-9243) or contact the Syracuse Wage and Hour office at (315) 448-0630. Information is also available on the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.

###

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.