Over One Hundred Thousand Dollars in Overtime Wages Owed to El Pollo Loco Workers

Sacramento, CA (Law Firm Newswire) February 4, 2015 – Restaurant chain El Pollo Loco owed 69 California workers $145,000 in back wages. The U.S. Labor Department ensured that the workers received their pay, in addition to damages.

“Restaurant workers in four different El Pollo Loco locations are to recover $72,613 in back wages and $72,613 in damages for working up to 70 hours a week, in six to seven day stints, without getting overtime pay,” explains respected Sacramento employment attorney, Deborah Barron. This is not the first lawsuit the franchise has been embroiled in.

In accordance with the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), El Pollo Loco headquarters, home to over 200 franchise locations in the state, should have compensated each worker at time and a half for overtime worked over and above a 40-hour workweek. Each worker may receive approximately $2,100. Under the FLSA, workers must be paid at least the $9.00/hour minimum for all hours worked, plus time and one-half, bonuses, incentive pay and commissions, for any hours worked over a 40-hour workweek.

“The Wage and Hour Division is committed to compliance in the restaurant industry and will use every available tool to ensure workers get what they deserve,,” says Danny Pasquil, West Covina division’s district director. California employers must keep accurate payroll and time records for all employees and any company that is found in violation is liable to pay workers for back wages, and a similar dollar amount in liquidated damages.

The Wage and Hour Division has a toll-free helpline for workers at 866-4US-WAGE or 487-9243.

Workers who feel they are not receiving payment for the number of hours they work need to contact an experienced employment attorney and find out what legal rights workers in California have. “If an employer is unplugging the time clock or insisting workers punch out but keep working, this practice, among others, is illegal,” Barron adds.

Learn more at http://www.lawbarron.com/