Cherry Hill Based National Freight Inc. Penalized for Violating Fair Labor Standards Act

Cherry Hill, NJ -- An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division determined one of the nation's largest commercial transportation companies, National Freight Inc., violated the Fair Labor Standards Act, according to a news release from U.S. Department of Labor.

National Freight, based in Cherry Hill, will pay more than $1 million in back wages. Investigators established National Freight wrongly classified dispatchers and yard spotters as exempt from the law's overtime requirements and failed to pay the legally required wages, the news release states.

National Freight paid dispatchers flat salaries, despite the number of hours they work. The company also created overtime violations when employees worked more than 40 hours in one week, according to the news release.

The company paid yard spotters by the hour, but failed to pay overtime when they're legally required to do so. The news release also stated the investigation determined that National Freight failed to maintain payroll records required by law.

To remedy the violations, National Freight is ordered to pay $1,072,061 to 357 of their employees. The company also reclassified hundreds of dispatchers and yard spotters and agreed to pay them the proper overtime compensation going forward, the news release states.

“Every dollar counts for NFI employees who work long days to earn a living,” said Dr. David Weil, administrator of the Wage and Hour Division. “The case’s resolution should send a strong message to other industry employers who may be denying overtime to workers in these positions: we will use every tool available to ensure that workers receive every penny they have earned, and to level the playing field for employers who play by the rules and do right by their workers.”

National Freight also agreed to take the following steps to ensure this kind of neglect won't happen again, according to the news release:

• Hire an internal compliance officer
• Institute and implement complaint procedures
• Create and publicize a complaint hotline
• Conduct confidential interviews with complainants
• Maintain a written log of complaints made to the compliance officer
• Provide training for all managerial employees

National Freight employees more than 8,000 associates and generates more than $1.2 billion in revenue annually, according to the news release.

The Fair Labor Standards Act requires that covered, nonexempt employees must be paid at least the federal minimum wage of $7.24 per hour for all hours worked, plus time and one-half their regular rates of pay, including commissions, bonuses and incentive pay, for hours worked beyond 40 per week, the news release states. Additionally, employers must maintain accurate time and payroll records of each employee.

An exemption from both minimum wage and overtime pay requirements for individuals employed in bona fide executive, administrative, professional and outside sales positions, and certain computer employees, are allowed under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Employees generally must meet certain tests regarding their job duties to be paid on a salary basis, the news release says. An employee's specific job duties and salary must meet all the requirements of the department's regulations in order to be paid on a salary basis at not less than $455 per week.

For more information about the Fair Labor Standards Act and other wage laws, visit http://www.dol.gov/whd/.

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