JKA Construction previously ordered to pay punitive damages after US Department of Labor investigation, litigation
BOSTON – The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has ordered a Massachusetts contractor to pay $438,000 in back wages to 250 employees for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act after the court had previously ordered the contractor to pay punitive damages for unlawful retaliation under the FLSA. Woburn-based JKA Construction Inc. and owners Clesio Da Silva, Fabio Da Costa, Rafael De Paula and Josias De Paula must also pay $64,750 in civil money penalties to the U.S. Department of Labor to resolve willful violations of the FLSA’s overtime requirements.
A U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation found that, between August 2017 and November 2020, the defendants did not pay overtime to employees who worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. Instead, they misclassified many of their employees as independent contractors and, in some cases, used a separate company to pay employees’ overtime hours at straight time rates. The defendants also failed to keep accurate and adequate records of compensation paid to their employees.
In addition to payment of the wages and penalties, the consent judgment requires the defendants to comply with the FLSA’s overtime and recordkeeping provisions and cooperate with Wage and Hour Division investigations. The consent judgment also prohibits them from demanding that employees return or ‘kick...
By Dean Aubrey Caratiquet As part of an intensified campaign against the spread of falsehoods that continue to undermine the integrity of the government and pose a threat to national security, PCO...