MANCHESTER, NH – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division recovered $6,333 in back pay and levied $10,000 in punitive damages after finding a Portland, Maine, hotel operator unlawfully terminated a housekeeper after they contacted the division with a concern about the operator’s pay practices.
The division’s investigators found Giri Portland Inc. – operating as Hilton Garden Inn Portland Airport – terminated the housekeeper two days after they contacted the division regarding a tip-related allegation.
When investigators reviewed the housekeeper’s employment record, they found no report of prior disciplinary actions related to their employment. While finding no Fair Labor Standards Act violation after reviewing the tip-related allegation, the division found the termination violated the FLSA’s provisions for prohibited retaliatory behavior.
The division determined the employer owed $6,333 in back pay to compensate the employee for the time they spent looking for work after the unlawful firing. In addition, the division recovered $10,000 in punitive damages for the employee and required that the employer provide a neutral reference for their former employee when prospective employers sought them.
“Federal law protects workers from retaliation or intimidation because they assert their rights or contact the U.S. Department of Labor,” explained Wage and Hour District Director Steven McKinney in Manchester, New Hampshire. “Terminating or disciplining an employee for...
Congress leaders Harshwardhan Sapkal and Nana Patole, Nationalist Congress Party (SP) legislator Rohit Pawar, and Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi said PM Modi's sp...