A Los Angeles garment contractor has been found to be paying its workers below what they have earned and to have violated record-keeping requirements.
A recent US Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation found Los Angeles garment contractor Sew Nice Inc had violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.
The company had paid some employees a piece-rate, failing to pay them required overtime when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. It has also violated recordkeeping requirements when it failed to keep a record of all wages paid to some workers paid in cash, failed to keep an accurate record of all the hours employees worked, and failed to maintain payroll records for the required number of months, a statement by the US Department of Labor says.
The investigation will result in the recovery of US$5,846 in back wages to ten employees. The garment contractor will also pay $3,485 in penalties because of the wilful nature of the violations found.
“These vulnerable workers deserve to receive every penny of their hard-earned wages, and the Wage and Hour Division remains committed to ensuring that happens,” says Rafael Valles, wage and hour division assistant district director in West Covina, California. “Our work in this industry continues, and aims to prevent employers from short-changing employees, ignoring the overtime pay requirements and gaining an unfair competitive advantage over those employers who play by the rules. Workers facing similar circumstances should call us confidentially to file a complaint. We enforce the law regardless of workers’ immigration status, and can speak with callers in more than 200 languages.”
Sew Nice Inc is said to produce garments for manufacturer Anna Bella sold by several retailers, including Fashion Nova. The company could not be reached for comment.
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By GlobalDataIn September last year, a California apparel industry wage-reform bill failed to come up for a vote in 2020’s legislative session, throwing doubt over whether it will ever be introduced.
The bill eliminates the piece rate in the garment industry while ensuring workers can still earn incentive-based bonuses above their legal wages and enforces liability to ensure retailers cannot use layers of contracting to avoid the law.
