Jan. 26—State labor officials said Tuesday that they recovered nearly $475,000 in wages that employers failed to pay workers last year, and for the first time, the department is making public the names of businesses that violate wage and hour laws.

The Maine Department of Labor took action against more than two dozen employers penalized for violating the state's wage and hour laws and published the names on a department web page.

"We hope that further publicizing the work the department does and the consequences of violating labor laws will both encourage workers who believe their rights have been violated to contact us and deter bad-acting employers from violating laws in the first place," said Scott Cotnoir, director of the labor department's wage and hour division.

Making sure all employers comply with wage and hours laws ensures that everyone plays by the same rules: Workers are paid what they're owed and employers can compete for labor on a level playing field, officials said.

The department is publishing the list of 2021 violators and the amount they were fined at maine.gov/labor/bls/whv2021/index.shtml and said it plans to update the site quarterly.

The department also said it is increasing its use of settlement agreements with businesses to ensure compliance with wage and hour laws. The agreements typically last two or three years and require businesses to train managers on employment law and disclose wage and other information to demonstrate they are complying...

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