Bay Area restaurant chain fined $550,000 for denying overtime pay, violating child labor laws

BURLINGAME – The operator of Bay Area restaurant chain Crepevine has been fined more than half a million dollars for denying overtime pay to 114 workers and violating federal child labor laws, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

An investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division found Suleiman Fakhouri & Sons did not pay workers overtime properly at locations in Berkeley, Burlingame, Oakland, Palo Alto and San Jose, the department said in news release Tuesday.

The division also discovered minors were assigned to work later and longer than child labor laws permit, according to the department.

The investigation recovered $234,636 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages. The department said Suleiman Fakhouri & Sons was also fined $82,706 for the “willful nature” of the violations, bringing the total to $551,978.

The violations included failing to combine hours employees worked at more than one location; paying overtime hours worked in cash at straight-time rates, when time and one-half is required; and allowing 14- and 15-year-old employees to work past 7 p.m., more than three hours on school nights and more than 18 hours during school weeks.

“The onus is on employers to ensure their employees are paid fully and that workers receive all of the protections they are due,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Susana Blanco.

In addition to the locations listed in the investigation, Suleiman Fakhouri & Sons operate Crepevine restaurants in Mountain View, San Francisco, San Rafael and Santa Rosa.