Mi Carreta Restaurant & Bakery Inc. paid straight-time rates for overtime hours

ST. PETERSBURG, FL – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation has found a St. Petersburg restaurant ran afoul of federal law, leading to the recovery of $28,162 in back wages for 36 employees, and changes to the employers’ pay practices. The employer illegally paid kitchen staff, dishwashers, and servers as independent contractors.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division determined that Mi Carreta Restaurant & Bakery Inc. violated several provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act when it:

• Paid hourly tipped workers and kitchen employees straight-time pay for hours over 40 in a workweek.
• Misclassified cooks, bakers, dishwashers, kitchen supervisor, servers, and helpers as independent contractors.
• Failed to keep time records as the law requires. The division found the employer’s payroll report failed to show required information including the number of hours worked and the issue date on a series of checks was incorrect. These practices violated federal recordkeeping requirements.

“When employees work more than 40 hours in a workweek, employers must pay overtime pay unless an exemption applies,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Nicolas Ratmiroff in Tampa, Florida. “Mi Carreta Restaurant & Bakery misclassified some employees as independent contractors and, by doing so, deprived workers of their full wages, benefits and rights, including the employer’s...

Read Full Story: https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiN2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmRvbC5nb3Yvb...