U.S. Department of Labor issued the following announcement on April 25.
J. Carmen Mora – a Northern California farm labor contractor – has paid $143,078 in back wages to 199 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation found multiple violations of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA). Additionally, WHD assessed the employer $23,048 in civil penalties.
WHD investigators found Mora - doing business as J.C. Mora in Brentwood, California - violated MSPA requirements by illegally deducting up to 12 percent in federal and state tax withholdings from employees' earnings and then failing to remit the withholdings to the IRS and to state tax officials.
Investigators found the farm labor contractor also failed to disclose employment conditions, provide wage statements, display MSPA posters, and keep employment records, as required.
"Employers are responsible for paying their employees all the wages they have legally earned," said Wage and Hour Division District Director Susana Blanco, in San Jose. "We urge employers to call us for assistance, and to use the tools we provide to help them comply with the law. We offer numerous resources for agricultural employers and engage in a robust outreach program to provide the information employers need."
Original source can be found here.