Staffing Agency To Pay More Than $7.2M In Back Wages & Damages

Virginia-Based Staffing Agency Ordered To Pay 1,105 Aides More Than $7.2 Million In Back Wages & Damages

The U.S. Department of Labor has reported that a federal court in Virginia has entered a judgment ordering a Norfolk-based medical staffing agency, which intentionally violated federal laws and denied 1,105 certified nursing aides, licensed practical nurses and registered nurses their rightfully earned overtime wages, to pay more than $7.2 million in back wages and liquidated damages.

The judgment in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Norfolk Division, requires Medical Staffing of America LLC, d/b/a Steadfast Medical Staffing, to pay at least $3,619,716 in back wages and at least $3,619,716 in liquidated damages to 1,105 employees. The court ordered the Department of Labor’s Solicitor of Labor to update the back wages to the present, which will likely increase the back wages and liquidated damages amounts substantially. The action follows an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division and litigation by the Solicitor of Labor.

The government’s investigation determined that since at least Aug. 18, 2015, the employer willfully misclassified the aides and nurses as independent contractors. By misclassifying the workers, the medical staffing agency paid them straight-time wages instead of time-and-a-half when they worked over 40 in a workweek. Steadfast Medical Staffing, a healthcare industry employment agency serving healthcare facilities nationwide by providing independent medical personnel, failed to maintain accurate records of total weekly hours worked. Both actions violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The court’s decision ends litigation filed in 2018 by the department after Steadfast Medical Staffing refused to pay back wages owed, and come into compliance after the investigation. For more information, please click complaint filed in 2018, complaint filed in 2019 and the court’s memorandum opinion and order.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor

EMPLOYEES WHO BELIEVE THEY HAVE BEEN MISCLASSIFIED OR OTHERWISE FINANCIALLY HARMED BY EMPLOYER WAGE AND HOUR VIOLATIONS ARE ENCOURAGED TO CONTACT KEHOE LAW FIRM, P.C. BY COMPLETING THE FORM ABOVE ON THE RIGHT OR SENDING AN E-MAIL TO [email protected] FOR A FREE, NO-OBLIGATION EVALUATION OF POTENTIAL LEGAL CLAIMS.

Kehoe Law Firm, P.C.