The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has identified significant violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act and has obtained remedies for them at 28 Huddle House restaurants in Georgia, Missouri and West Virginia.
Corporate franchisor Huddle House Inc. has agreed to facilitate compliance among all its franchisee-operated restaurants as well as to assist the division in promoting industrywide compliance with the FLSA. In addition, minimum and overtime back wages totaling $60,594 will be paid to 128 employees. Finally, the division assessed $48,317 in civil money penalties for repeat and child labor violations.
The division’s investigations were initiated under a multiyear enforcement initiative focused on the restaurant industry in Georgia, where widespread noncompliance with the FLSA’s minimum wage, overtime, record-keeping and child labor provisions had been found, particularly among companies that use a franchise business model.