Federal judge orders New Kensington landscaping company to pay $150,000 in back wages, penalties

A New Kensington landscaping company has been ordered to pay $150,000 in back wages and penalties after an investigation found the employer denied overtime pay to its workers.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the investigation found that Shurina Brothers LLC did not pay employees time-and-a-half for overtime hours worked between Jan. 11, 2018, and Dec. 31, 2020. Instead, the employer paid straight-time rates off the books, which is a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

According to the Labor Department, the business is owned by Christopher Shurina.

The company also failed to record and maintain accurate daily and weekly records of total hours worked, hourly pay rates for workweeks in which overtime was due and total premium pay for overtime, officials said.

Following litigation from the Labor Department’s Office of the Solicitor, a federal judge in Pittsburgh ordered Shurina Brothers LLC to pay more than $61,000 in overtime back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to impacted workers. The company must also pay close to $28,000 in civil penalties.

The consent judgement also enjoins the defendants from future violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime and record keeping requirements.

“Landscaping employees are often among the most vulnerable in the nation’s workforce,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director John DuMont in Pittsburgh. “Our investigation found Shurina Brothers LLC and owner Christopher Shurina shortchanged these workers of their rightful wages.

“In addition to harming their workers, the employer gained an unfair competitive advantage by ignoring their legal obligations.”

Adam Welsh, counsel for Wage and Hour with the department’s Office of the Solicitor in Philadelphia, added, “The successful investigation and litigation should remind workers that we will defend their legal rights to be paid for all hours worked and take action against employers who disregard the law willfully.”

Workers are able to call the Wage and Hour Division at 866-487-9243 to ask confidential questions or to learn more about the Fair Labor Standards Act.