PHOENIX — A Phoenix-based laundry business has been ordered to pay over $281,000 for demanding kickbacks from its workers after it was ordered to pay overtime wages.
The U.S. Department of Labor said Sparklean Laundry and Piper engaged in workplace retaliation after investigators discovered 70 of the company's workers were owed overtime wages in 2020.
One employee was owed nearly $7,000 in back wages, court records show.
DOL said the company had agreed to pay the overtime back wages but the federal agency said Sparklean didn't keep its promise.
The company had allegedly demanded kickbacks from workers who were owed compensation, submitted falsified records showing the overtime was paid, and made "immigration-related and other threats" to several employees who cooperated with investigators, court records show.
As a result, the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona issued an order on Oct. 11 ordering the company to pay $87,735 in back wages, $94,135 in liquidated damages, and $100,000 in punitive damages.
“Workplace retaliation is intolerable and illegal, and demanding that employees return their hard-earned wages to their employer is among the most egregious types of retaliation we regrettably see,” said Regional Solicitor of Labor Marc Pilotin in a statement.
More information on worker's rights and the Fair Labor Standards Act can be found here.
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