Farm labor contracting company Diaz Contracting was recently investigated by the Department of Labor's (DOL) Wage and Hour Division and found in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) overtime and minimum wages provisions. As a result, the DOL has filed a class action lawsuit against the company to recover $634,8000 in back wages for 129 workers.

The FLSA guarantees all covered nonexempt workers be paid at least minimum wage hours worked up to 40, and time-and-a-half rates for additional time attendance.

"Low wage workers are particularly vulnerable and the mobile nature of the work in industries such as agriculture often poses challenges to enforcement," said Labor Commissioner Julie A. Su.

"This lawsuit … sends a message that when workers come forward to tell us about illegal working conditions, we will take action to protect them," Su added.

To prevent similar violations in the future, the company has agreed to bring payroll practices into compliance. If employers are unable to track employee attendance on job sites currently, they might want to invest in a remote timeclock that enables them to generate accurate records of work time. 

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