Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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FORT WORTH, Texas -- The city of Fort Worth’s Code Enforcement Division has paid $220,521 in overtime back wages after a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation found that 79 former and current code enforcement officers and office staff workers had not been properly paid.

The investigation determined that the city of Fort Worth had violated the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) by misclassifying employees as exempt from the law and failing to properly pay overtime wages to those who worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. In addition, required recordkeeping was not maintained.

“The Department of Labor is committed to enforcing the FLSA to ensure that employees receive the wages to which they are legally entitled,” said Cynthia Watson, the Wage and Hour Division’s regional administrator in the Southwest. “In this case, the employer failed to pay employees who were performing duties prior to the start of their shift and also misclassified some workers as being exempt from overtime.”

The city of Fort Worth’s Code Enforcement Division’s responsibilities include performing inspections and investigating complaints concerning dangerous and/or substandard structures, as well as tagging and towing junked motor vehicles. The division cooperated with the investigation and agreed to future compliance with the FLSA. All back wages have been paid in full.

The FLSA requires that covered employees be paid the federal minimum wage for all hours worked, plus time and one-half their regular rates of pay for hours worked over 40 per week. In general, “hours worked” includes all time an employee must be on duty, or on the employer’s premises or at any other prescribed place of work, from the beginning of the first principal activity of the workday to the end of the last principal work activity of the workday. Under this law, employers must also maintain accurate time and payroll records.

For more information about the FLSA, call the Wage and Hour Division’s Dallas District Office at 817-861-2150 or 817-261-4371 (metro toll-free number), or 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. Details about the current exemption for white collar executive, administrative and professional employees can be found at www.dol.gov/fairpay.

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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.