An Orlando landscaper got caught shorting workers almost $49,000 in pay, Labor says
An Orlando landscape company violated the Fair Labor Standards Act and owes workers $48,978 in back pay, the U.S. Department of Labor has announced.
That money will go to 39 workers of Aaction Scape, about $1,255.85 per employee.
Labor’s Wage and Hour Division investigators found that Aaction Scape improperly classified workers as exempt from overtime and paid them flat salaries every other week, even when they worked more than 40 hours in a week and earned overtime pay.
Also, the company didn’t keep proper records of employee hours worked, another FLSA violation.
“Employers must understand that paying workers a salary does not excuse them automatically from paying them overtime,” Wage and Hour Division District Director Wildalí De Jesús said. “These workers deserve to be paid all the wages they have earned. The U.S. Department of Labor encourages all employers to contact their nearest Wage and Hour Division office for assistance with understanding their responsibilities under the law.”
When a Miami Herald reporter called the number listed on Aaction Scape’s website and its LinkedIn site and asked for company president Daniel Papasakellariou or manager Betsy Bacci, the person who answered the phone said, “You have the wrong number” and hung up quickly.
The Wage and Hour complaint section of the Department of Labor website contains information on how to file a complaint. Miami’s Wage and Hour Division office can be reached at 305-598-6607.
This story was originally published March 17, 2021 at 10:05 AM with the headline "An Orlando landscaper got caught shorting workers almost $49,000 in pay, Labor says."
