Employers might assume that as long as they actually pay their employees minimum wage and issue paychecks on time, they won't run into issues with the Department of Labor (DOL). However, they shouldn't be surprised when that's not the case, because the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) includes numerous provisions that extend beyond that basic employee right.

Eagle Electric, a Houma, Louisiana-based company, was contracted to perform work on the Assumption Parish Community Center for the Assumption Parish Police Jury. The company may have assumed everything was going according to plan on the federally financed project, but an investigation on behalf of the DOL's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) revealed that this was not true.

In fact, 15 employees were being denied the wages they had rightfully earned, the WHD alleges. Audits revealed that the employer was not paying its workers the correct wages for their regular time and attendance or overtime. Because the work fell under the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts and the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act as well as the FLSA, the employer was required to pay staff members according to prevailing wages in the area, but it failed to do so.

"Employers who enter into federal contracts are required to pay prevailing wages and benefits to workers in accordance with stated federal guidelines for the localities in which they live," said Southwest WHD regional administrator Cynthia Watson.

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