California home healthcare firm to pay $654,082 in back wages
In a sign that the Department of Labor (DOL) is cracking down on overtime violations, the Wage and Hour Division in West Covina, California, recently investigated Extended Health Care and ordered employers to pay 108 employees $654,082 in back wages. Investigators found the home nursing company was not keeping proper records of employee attendance or paying workers the wages they were owed for overtime.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires employees be paid time-and-a-half their regular wage for any time attendance in excess of 40 hours during a single week. Some of the registered and vocational nurses employed by Extended Health Care were paid straight-time, while others were paid time-and-a-quarter. The investigation also revealed the company was misclassifying employees as independent contractors, and was therefore denying them benefits they were owed.
"All employees deserve full and fair compensation for all hours worked," said Priscilla Garcia, West Covina's district office director of the Wage and Hour Division. "This action to restore more than half a million dollars in back wages reflects the department's commitment to protect the overtime rights of these workers."
The home healthcare industry's payroll practices have recently come under scrutiny, as the DOL works to ensure nurses, who are sometimes charged with providing round-the-clock care, are properly compensated for their employee attendance.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires employees be paid time-and-a-half their regular wage for any time attendance in excess of 40 hours during a single week. Some of the registered and vocational nurses employed by Extended Health Care were paid straight-time, while others were paid time-and-a-quarter. The investigation also revealed the company was misclassifying employees as independent contractors, and was therefore denying them benefits they were owed.
"All employees deserve full and fair compensation for all hours worked," said Priscilla Garcia, West Covina's district office director of the Wage and Hour Division. "This action to restore more than half a million dollars in back wages reflects the department's commitment to protect the overtime rights of these workers."
The home healthcare industry's payroll practices have recently come under scrutiny, as the DOL works to ensure nurses, who are sometimes charged with providing round-the-clock care, are properly compensated for their employee attendance.
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