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Federal court orders Indiana home health companies to pay overtime

By Justin Hicks, IPB News | Published on in Business, Economy, Law, Statewide News
The U.S. Department of Labor initiated the overtime payment order by filing a lawsuit in a federal district court. (Justin Hicks/IPB News)

A federal court ordered two Indiana health care companies to pay 171 employees nearly $450,000 dollars. The order follows a fair labor standards investigation by the Department of Labor.

The two companies – Heal at Home and Comfort Keepers – are both owned by Timothy Paul. The same employees were being scheduled to work through both companies. But when workers logged more than a combined 40 hours a week, they were denied overtime pay.

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The federal Fair Labor Standards Act says employees have to be paid time and-a-half for overtime hours.

Patricia Lewis, DOL wage and hour district director in Indianapolis, said in a news release when the company denied the pay, it robbed employees of “wages they rightfully earned.”

Contact reporter Justin at jhicks@wvpe.org or follow him on Twitter at @Hicks_JustinM.