On Oct. 13, 2023, Judge Mark A. Goldsmith entered an agreed consent order and judgment requiring Great Lakes Care Companions Inc., and its owner, Juan G. Salazar to pay a total of $95,074 in back wages, liquidated damages, and interest to 34 workers. Prior to the execution of the consent order and judgment, the company paid $31,791 of the back wages owed. The company and Salazar agreed to pay the remaining amount including $1,225 in interest by Sept. 20, 2024. An investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division alleged the Filion, Michigan home healthcare services provider failed to pay care workers overtime at time and one-half their regular rate of pay for hours over 40 in a workweek from at least Aug. 1, 2019, to July 31, 2021, a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The company and Salazar are also required to distribute informational materials to employees concerning their rights under the FLSA and were ordered not to violate the act in the future.
