Wage and Hour Division (WHD)
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McDonald’s franchise owner agrees to pay nearly $30,500 in back wages and child labor penalties after US Labor Department investigation
PHOENIX, Md. -- Bill Taylor, president of B & D Taylor Inc. has agreed to pay $20,502.05 in back wages to five workers after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation identified violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act that occurred at the company’s McDonald’s restaurant at 3425 Sweet Air Road in Phoenix.
The investigation, conducted by the department’s Wage and Hour Division, found that employees were paid straight time, rather than overtime, for hours worked in excess of 40 per week. It also revealed that the company employed minors who worked in violation of the FLSA’s child labor laws, which restrict the hours that minors can work and the tasks they can perform. Both provisions were violated in this case. For the child labor violations, the department ordered the company to pay $9,990 in civil money penalties.
“Fast food restaurants like McDonald’s have a legal responsibility to properly compensate workers, as well as ensure that any employed minors work appropriate hours in allowable occupations,” said John Kelly, acting director of the Wage and Hour Division’s Baltimore District Office.
The FLSA requires that covered employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage as well as one and one-half times their regular rates of pay for hours worked over 40 per week. Additionally, the law requires that accurate records of employees’ wages, hours and other conditions of employment be maintained. The current federal minimum wage for covered, nonexempt employees is $7.25 per hour.
FLSA child labor provisions restrict the number of hours individuals under 16 years of age are allowed to work and the times during which they can be employed. Minors may not work more than three hours on school days, eight hours on nonschool days, 18 hours in school weeks or 40 hours during nonschool weeks. The regulations detail that 14- and 15-year-olds may work during nonschool hours, but no later than 7 p.m. or 9 p.m. from June 1 until Labor Day.
For more information about the FLSA’s requirements, call the Wage and Hour Division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243) or visit http://www.dol.gov/whd. The division’s Baltimore, Md., office can be reached at 410-962-6211.
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