Connecticut restaurant owner fined, ordered to pay back wages to employees

The United States Labor Department recently recovered more than $23,000 in minimum wages and overtime back pay following a second investigation of Goodfellas Cafe - a restaurant in New Haven, Connecticut.

"The previous investigation resulted in three kitchen employees being paid $7,000 in minimum and overtime back wages, and the owner agreed to future compliance with the law," said Neil Patrick, district director for the Wage and Hour Division's Hartford office.

However, restaurant owner Gennaro Iannaccone continued to disregard the regulations set by the Fair Labor Standards Act by failing to pay his employees a minimum of $7.25 per hour, as well as time-and-a-half for each hour of employee attendance in excess of 40 hours per week. As a result, he was fined $1,870 for willful and recurring FLSA violations in addition to being ordered to reimburse the workers.

Earlier this year, a Los Angeles restaurant owner agreed to pay 35 of its workers more than $162,000 in a similar case involving time and attendance law violations.