Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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DALLAS -- The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit against Merchant and Merchant Inc., Dollars R Us Inc., Merchant and Khoja Inc. and Hanif Merchant of Dallas, Texas, for allegedly failing to pay overtime to stockers, cashiers and drivers, as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

The complaint was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division. The lawsuit resulted from an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division in Dallas, which found overtime, minimum wage and recordkeeping violations of the FLSA.

“These employers paid their employees a day rate or a straight hourly rate without overtime compensation for hours worked over 40 in a workweek,” said Cynthia Watson, the Wage and Hour Division’s regional administrator in Dallas. “Employees are entitled to receive the overtime wages they earn. In this case, almost $119,000 is due to 27 workers.”

The investigation, which included locations in Dallas, Garland and Grand Prairie, Texas, covered the two-year period May 18, 2003 to May 17, 2005. The Wage and Hour Division determined that general merchandise retailers Merchant and Merchant Inc., doing business as $1.00 Mart, and Dollars R Us Inc., doing business as Only $1.00, Merchant and Khoja Inc., a wholesale warehouse doing business as Priceless Wholesale, and Hanif Merchant, had violated the FLSA by not properly paying employees overtime wages equal to one and one-half times their regular rate of pay for the hours worked more than 40 per week. The companies also failed to keep required records.

The FLSA requires that covered employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked, plus time and one-half their regular rate of pay for hours worked more than 40 per week, unless otherwise exempt. Employers must also maintain accurate time and payroll records.

The Wage and Hour Division concluded 31,987 compliance actions in fiscal year 2006 and recovered more than $171 million in back wages for more than 246,000 employees. Back-wage collections last year represent a 30 percent increase over back wages collected in fiscal year 2001. The number of workers receiving back wages has increased by 14 percent since fiscal year 2001.

For more information about the FLSA and other laws administered by the Wage and Hour Division, call the department’s toll-free help line at (866) 4US-WAGE (487-9243) or contact the Wage and Hour Division’s district office in Dallas at (817) 861-2150. Information also is on the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.

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U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audio tape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at (202) 693-7828 or TTY (202) 693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America’s employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/compliance.