AVI to pay $88K in back wages to workers

WARREN — AVI Foodsystems of Warren has agreed to pay $88,000 in back wages to 42 employees to resolve allegations of overtime pay violations.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced the payment, saying it resolved a complaint it filed. AVI, which provides vending machines and other food services to companies, agreed to the payment without admitting that it violated federal law regarding overtime pay.

The company noted in a release that it did not incur any fines or penalties. It said a federal audit found that employees were classified incorrectly as being exempt from overtime pay. AVI said it agreed to reclassify the employees and to provide back pay based on the new classification.

The complaint said that AVI failed to pay employees 1.5 times their regular pay for each hour worked more than 40 in a week. The complaint also said the company didn’t maintain adequate records of employees’ wages and hours worked.

Federal law requires workers be paid at overtime rates for working more than 40 hours in a week, unless they are in a position that is exempt from overtime rules.

The federal government resolved more than 30,000 compliance actions in its 2007 fiscal year for overtime violations and recovered a record $220 million in back wages.