Paul DeCamp, Member of the Firm in the Employment, Labor & Workforce Management practice, in the firm’s Washington, DC office, was quoted in HR Dive, in “Restaurant Pays Big for Repeat Wage-Hour Violations,” by Jen Carsen.

Following is an excerpt:

Enforced by WHD, the FLSA sets the standards for minimum wage, overtime, recordkeeping and youth employment. WHD investigators found that China Palace did not always pay employees the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour or pay overtime when employees worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. The FLSA mandates that employers must pay non-exempt employees overtime for any hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek. Overtime pay is equal to time-and-a-half an employee's regular rate of pay.

In recent months, the agency has touted its Payroll Audit Independent Determination (PAID) program, which allows employers to audit their pay practices, self-report any violations of the FLSA and then work with WHD to correct errors and get workers back pay as quickly as possible.

Some employers have hesitated to participate, however, for fear of painting a target on their own backs. Much of that fear stems from the fact that at least 11 states have voiced strong opposition to the PAID program and have all but threatened employers that if they participate in the program, there will be retaliation. Paul DeCamp, former WHD administration and member of the firm at Epstein Becker & Green, PC, previously told HR Dive that the program remains unacceptably risky for employers. “So far I have not advised a single client to participate in the PAID program, and I don’t think that I will, unless and until it becomes clear that the risk of follow-on state enforcement action or private litigation is minimal. In this environment, I think that having a client participate in PAID is inviting more risk than it solves. Which is unfortunate, because I think that the program is potentially good for everybody — except lawyers.”

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