The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the Department of Labor (DOL) is conducting a sweep of Los Angeles and San Francisco restaurants after investigations along the West Coast found 71 percent of all restaurants were in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
Common violations in the restaurant industry include not paying employees for all hours worked, having employees work off the clock, misclassifying employees as exempt and making illegal deductions from employees’ wages for uniforms, breakage, cash register shortages or walkouts in which customers left the restaurant without paying.
The WHD says its investigations so far have found 72 percent of L.A. restaurants and 68 percent of San Francisco restaurants to be in violation of the FLSA.
The DOL has established an online database for consumers to check on which establishment is in violation: http://ogesdw.dol.gov/