San Juan-based security guard company Optimus Investigations Corp. and its owner Jorge Rivera-Berríos has been ordered to pay more than $166,000 in back wages and liquidate damages to 243 employees misclassified as independent contractors, the U.S. Department of Labor announced Tuesday.
U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigators found that security firm Alpha Guards Management failed to protect fair wages and benefits of 650 guards in Puerto Rico, owing them nearly $350,000 in back wages and damages.
The U.S. Department of Labor has filed suit in federal court against Beneficiado de Café Las Indieras, doing business as Hacienda Remanso de Paz, and its president, Wilfredo Ruiz-Vargas, for alleged violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s minimum wage and record-keeping provisions.