Darden Restaurants Inc., doing business as the Olive Garden in Mesquite, has agreed to pay $25,570 in back wages after an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found that 140 current and former servers were not properly paid as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act. The company also has been assessed $30,800 in civil money penalties to be paid to the government.

“The illegal practice of not paying servers for all hours worked is common in the restaurant industry,” said Cynthia Watson, regional administrator for the Wage and Hour Division in the Southwest. “Workers deserve full and fair compensation for all hours of their hard work. The resolution of this case demonstrates that we will use every available enforcement tool, including the assessment of civil money penalties, to bring violators to justice and deter all restaurants in the area from committing future labor violations.”  This investigation was conducted by the Wage and Hour Division’s Dallas District Office, which determined that the employer allowed workers to clock in once customers were seated, instead of at the start of their scheduled work shifts, resulting in shorter compensated hours and fewer wages paid. The employer’s failure to properly record employees’ hours also resulted in violations of the FLSA’s minimum wage, as well as record-keeping, provisions. (click on link to read full story)