Business & Tech
El Jimador To Pay $74k in Back Wages
Investigators find violations at restaurants' Clemson and Westminister locations. Easley location closed earlier this year.
A business with several Upstate locations will pay employees nearly $75,000 in back wages, following a federal investigation.
WYFF reports that the U.S. Department of Labor found that El Jimador Mexican Restaurants will pay the owed wages to 13 employees at its Westminister and Clemson locations.
A release from the Labor Department's wage and hour division said that the restaurant locations had low-wage employees essentially “working off the books.”
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Workers were paid less than the federal minimum hourly wage of $7.25. Money was deducted from their paychecks illegally to pay for the workers' uniforms, investigators said.
Investigators said both El Jimador locations violated the Fair Labor Standard Act's overtime, minimum wage and record-keeping provisions.
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El Jimador owners have agreed to pay the back wages and comply with federal labor laws.
El Jimador had a location in Easley for several years, at the old Ryan's location on Highway 123, but owners closed it earlier this year, saying they were considering opening a new location in Anderson.
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