WEST COLUMBIA, SC – The U.S. Department of Labor found a West Columbia home healthcare provider shortchanged 36 employees who provide companionship and personal care for seniors, people with cognitive disorders, mothers of newborns and others who need assistance, by denying them the overtime wages they earned.
Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division found that Attentive Angels Home Care LLC paid employees straight-time rates when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek, a violation of the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The division’s investigation recovered $120,321 in back wages and liquidated damages for the 36 workers.
“Care workers provide a vital service to our families and communities and are critical to the nation’s economy. They promote our safety and health and often serve some of the most vulnerable populations. They must receive all of their rightfully earned wages,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Jamie Benefiel in Columbia, South Carolina. “This investigation should remind other employers to ensure that they are accurately paying overtime when due and contact the Wage and Hour Division with any questions.”
Attentive Angels Home Care operates third-party home care services in Columbia and the surrounding area.
The Wage and Hour Division provides multiple tools to help employers understand their responsibilities, and offers confidential compliance assistance to anyone with questions about how to comply with the law. Workers can call the division confidentially with questions – regardless of their immigration status – and the department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages.
For information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the division, contact the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243) or visit the agency’s website to learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division.
