Patisserie La Palme D’or assessed nearly $35K in penalties for willful disregard of law
HONOLULU – A federal investigation recovered $153,070 in back wages and liquidated damages for 17 workers of a Honolulu bakery and café whose operator denied them their overtime wages and endangered the safety of minor-aged workers.
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division determined that Patisserie La Palme D’or – owned by Hiromi Tanaka – attempted to evade overtime obligations by identifying six pastry chefs as managers. The employer failed to pay them overtime wages for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. Tanaka also failed to pay several employees at least the federal minimum wage as required. These actions violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Investigators also found the employer allowed minor-aged workers to load and operate a trash compactor, in violation of the FLSA’s hazardous labor provisions for young workers.
In addition to the back wages and damages, the department assessed Patisserie La Palme D’or with $34,960 in civil money penalties for the willful nature of their violations.
“Employers are legally obligated to pay most workers the federal minimum wage and overtime. They cannot avoid paying overtime by simply giving their workers the title of manager,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Terence Trotter in Honolulu. “La Palme D’or failed to pay workers as required and did not provide a safe workplace for minor employees. Consequently, they...
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