U.S. Department of Labor issued the following announcement on Jan. 2.
After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD), Avalon Hunter Jumpers LLC – a Bay Area horse training facility – will pay $33,034 to seven employees for violations of the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
WHD investigators found Avalon Hunter Jumpers LLC erroneously classified employees who groomed horses as independent contractors and, as a result, failed to pay those employees overtime when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. Instead, the employer paid employees flat monthly salaries without regard to the number of hours they actually worked. The Menlo Park, California-based employer also failed to record the number of hours employees worked, a violation of FLSA recordkeeping requirements.
“Employers are responsible for ensuring that they pay all employees the wages they have legally earned, and for keeping accurate records of the number of hours they work,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Susana Blanco, in San Jose, California. “Other employers should take note of this investigation and ensure that their own pay practices comply with the law. The U.S. Department of Labor provides many tools to help employers understand their responsibilities. Violations like those in this case can be avoided.”
Original source can be found here.