US Department of Labor recovers $876K in back wages, damages for workers denied overtime pay by Norfolk home care employ

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https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/whd/whd20240222-2

NORFOLK, VA – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has recovered nearly $900,000 in back wages and damages after its investigation found a Norfolk home care employer denied 108 workers their hard-earned overtime pay.

The division’s investigation found that Advantage Home Care LLC and co-owners Dondra Nichols and Phillip Simons failed to pay required overtime rates for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek and did not maintain accurate records of hours worked. The employers paid $438,277 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages for these violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

“Workers in the low-wage home care industry must stretch their wages as far as they can go to make ends meet, making Advantage Home Care’s wage theft especially harmful,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Roberto Melendez in Richmond, Virginia. “We encourage other home care employers to evaluate their own pay practices to ensure they are in compliance with the law.”

Advantage Home Care LLC provides nurses and home health aides for in-home care services in the Hampton Roads area.

The FLSA requires that most employees in the U.S. be paid at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime pay at not less than time and one-half the regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek. It also prohibits employers from firing or taking adverse action against employees for exercising their rights.

Learn more about protections for domestic service workers under the FLSA. A self-assessment tool for workers is also available to help them determine if they are entitled to federal minimum wage and overtime pay.

For more information about the FLSA and other laws the division enforces, contact its toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Workers can call the division confidentially with questions or concerns – regardless of where they are from – and the department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages. Help ensure hours worked and pay are accurate by downloading the department’s Android and iOS Timesheet App for free in English or Spanish.
Agency
Wage and Hour Division
Date
February 22, 2024
Release Number
24-326-PHI
Media Contact: Joanna Hawkins
Phone Number
215-861-5101
Email
hawkins.joanna@dol.gov
Media Contact: Leni Fortson
Phone Number
215-861-5102
Email:uddyback-fortson.lenore@dol.gov