The US Department of Labor (DOL) has recovered $446,334 in back wages and liquidated damages from two northwest Louisiana home care companies that misclassified 88 workers as independent contractors, depriving them of overtime wages in violation of federal law. The department’s Wage and Hour Division found that 24 employees of the Stonewall-based Inner Quality Services LLC and 64 employees of the Shreveport-based Sincere Client Care Services LLC were misclassified as independent contractors and paid straight-time rates for all hours worked, including for hours over 40 in a workweek. The division recovered $70,106 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages from Inner Quality Services for affected employees, and $153,061 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages for the affected employees at Sincere Client Care Services to resolve their Fair Labor Standards Act violations.
