3 Florida Hungry Howie’s pizza joints shorted drivers $2,800. One had child labor issues
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Florida, food and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
Unpaid or underpaid labor can seem as common in Florida restaurants and grocery stores as mahi-mahi.
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Three Hungry Howie’s pizza franchises in Jacksonville have paid delivery drivers $2,895 in earned back wages as well as $7,839 in civil money penalties after child labor violations were found, the U.S. Department of Labor announced.
The pay went to 12 workers, $241.25 per worker.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) violations were found at Hungry Howie’s owned by Westside Pizza Company Inc., Dames Point Pizza Inc. and River City Pizza Inc., all of which are run by president Joyce Kellogg and vice president Jeffrey Kellogg, according to state records.
The person answering the phone at the Hungry Howie’s location under Westside Pizza Company said the Kelloggs call in for messages each day, but a message left for them by the Miami Herald wasn’t returned.
That’s also the location that had two minors working too late during the school week, incurring the civil money penalty.
As for the pay problems, Wage and Hour Division investigators found the stores “didn’t include driver compensation bonuses when calculating overtime rates, and failed to assess overtime pay requirements at the state’s minimum wage rate, which is higher than the federal minimum wage.”
“Shortchanging workers of overtime pay hurts workers who rely on that that extra pay and their families,” said Wage and Hour District Director Wildalí De Jesús “It harms the very people who are willing to take on extra work. We encourage employers to reach out to us to answer any questions, including questions about child labor laws, to ensure they are complying with the law.”
The Wage and Hour complaint section of Labor’s website contains information on how to file a complaint if you believe your employer has violated FLSA. Miami’s Wage and Hour Division office can be reached at 305-598-6607. The national helpline is 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243).
No matter a worker’s immigration or citizenship status, he or she can speak with the department, which says it can handle calls in more than 200 languages.
This story was originally published March 16, 2022 at 12:33 PM.
