Investigation Recovers Back Wages for Custodial Service Employees

A recent investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and its Wage and Hour Division (WHD) has recovered US$20,849 in back wages for 31 custodial workers.

The workers’ employer, Quality Touch Janitorial Service Inc. of North Charleston, South Carolina, was found to have violated the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). DOL investigators determined that instead of tracking the number of hours employees worked each week and paying overtime when they worked beyond 40, Quality Touch tracked and paid overtime after employees worked 86.67 hours in a semi-monthly pay period. The FLSA requires employers to pay overtime for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek.

The DOL also found the cleaning company failed to include certain hazard and specialty cleaning pay in workers’ regular rates of pay when calculating overtime rates. Excluding those amounts resulted in the employer paying overtime at rates lower than those required by law.

 “The pandemic has made our work to ensure essential workers take home every cent of their hard-earned wages and that employers understand their responsibilities vitally important,” said WHD District Director Jamie Benefiel. “We encourage anyone with questions to reach out to us for confidential assistance.”