There’s Hard Headed, and Then There’s This Guy
Posted on 29-Oct-08 by The Timekeeper
OK, so let’s say you got caught in not one, but five federal DOL audits for not paying minimum wage or overtime. And you’d been ordered by the courts in 2003 and again in 2005 to pay back wages to your beleaguered employees to the tune of a total of nearly $150,000 plus interest.
What on earth would make you think at that point it was a good idea to not only largely ignore those court orders, but continue to violate the provisions of the FLSA?
See, that’s the position in which Manuel Jaime, co-owner of several El Maguey Mexican Restaurants in Missouri reportedly found himself not too long ago. In an article unfortunately apparently no longer available on their website, the Lee’s Summit Journal reported the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri had found Jaime in civil contempt for violating provisions of previous consent orders and had imposed some fairly draconian penalties.
Lest one think court orders could be allowed to slide with impunity, consider the situation in which Mr. Jaime now finds himself:
- The amount of the outstanding balance related to the earlier court order was doubled as compensation to his employees for the delay in their payments.
- He’s still on the hook for the remaining balance of the later court order.
- He has to pay all attorney fees and court costs.
- He has to help the Wage and Hour Division figure up all the additional back wages he owes for violations since February 2007 — and pay double the amount computed.
- He can’t open any additional restaurants or renew any liquor licenses until he’s paid all the back wages in full.
- And he has to set up a process for employees to file anonymous complaints about any future FLSA violations at all businesses he owns, manages or controls.
Wouldn’t it just have been easier (and cheaper) to pay the back wages the first time around? Or better yet, install a good time and attendance system and make sure you pay everybody correctly to start with?
I’m just sayin.
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