Landscaper Pays $550,000 in Back Wages, Penalties for Underpaying Foreign Workers

The owner said H-2B rules are complex and constantly changing, and he paid the shortfall in wages after being notified.

The Denver Post
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Parkside Landscaping of Littleton, Colorado, has paid more than a half-million dollars in back wages and penalties to settle allegations it underpaid foreign workers it hired to fill seasonal jobs, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division said.

The company paid $524,063 in back wages to 53 employees, and $26,104 in penalties to resolve violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act and H-2B nonagricultural visa program provisions.

Gene Baker, the company’s owner, said the government sharply raised the wages required for landscape workers after he had signed contracts with his clients, putting him in a bind.

“We have learned from the process, paid the cost promptly and moved forward. We are now in full compliance,” he said.

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