FL Company Owed Workers $92K In Overtime Wages: U.S. Dept. Of Labor

BRADENTON, FL — An outdoor patio furniture company in Bradenton owed its workers about $92,000 in back wages after denying their overtime pay, according to a U.S. Department of Labor news release.

Alumatech Furniture Manufacturing Inc. failed to pay eight employees overtime rates for hours worked over a 40 hour work week, which is a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Predominantly, piece-rate and commission-based workers at the company were affected by the lack of overtime pay, the agency said.

The back wages have been recovered for the employees and Alumatech was fined about $8,000 for the repeated violations.

“The U.S. Department of Labor is committed to ensuring workers get every dollar they earned,” Nicolas Ratmiroff, the wage and hour division district director for the agency’s Tampa office, said. “Employers who choose to pay employees by piece or hour must still pay non-exempt employees the required overtime rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. Employers should contact the Wage and Hour Division to ensure their pay practices comply with the law. Faulty pay practices can lead to sizable wage and damage recoveries and possibly penalties, all of which makes for a very costly lesson.”

Alumatech, which manufactures, sells and repairs outdoor furniture at its Bradenton factory, employs about 55 workers.

It’s operated under the name Alumatech since 1988 and its founders have been in the outdoor patio furniture industry since 1974, according to the company website.

A previous investigation found that the company failed to pay overtime premiums to piece-rate workers from September 2016 to September 2018, the U.S. Department of Labor said.

The agency recovered more than $8,000 in back wages during this investigation.