The U.S. Department of Labor plans to conduct investigations of the local construction and restaurant industries throughout the year, with an emphasis on overtime pay and child-labor regulation violations.

Chad Frasier, district director for the labor department's Wage and Hour Division in Denver, says that the restaurant industry has been targeted because of past performance by similar businesses. "The industry typically pays relatively low wages and employs workers who may not be aware of their rights under the FLSA, or how to complain when those rights are violated," he explains. "Many of them are recent immigrants to this country and may not speak English; some of them are simply young and new to the workforce."

According to Frasier, the labor department has found that restaurants have had problems keeping records, meeting minimum hourly wage, paying for overtime hours, and adhering to the child labor standards within the FLSA. (click on link to read full story)