A local tire business and its owner who were sued Jan. 26 by the U.S. Department of Labor on accusations of failing to pay overtime wages had a default judgment entered against them Wednesday.
In granting the department's request for the default judgment, U.S. District Judge James Moody Jr. noted that Macuils Tire and Service Center and its owner, Sergio Macuil Sr., were properly served with a copy of the complaint but "have not answered, appeared or raised any defenses to the allegations."
The complaint said that since Feb. 22, 2015, the business had violated federal labor laws by making employees work more than 40 hours a week without paying them at a rate of at least one and a half times the regular rate for all hours worked beyond 40. It also said the business had failed to make, keep and preserve adequate and accurate records to show, among other things, the hours worked each day and the total hours worked each week by many employees.
Moody's order said the business and its owner "are withholding $38,324.16 in unpaid overtime compensation due to its employees, and the employees are due $38,324.16 in liquidated damages."
He said the unpaid overtime is for work performed between May 19, 2014, and May 18, 2017, and that the liquidated damages are due on top of that amount, for a total of $76,648.32 due to 12 employees identified by name in court documents: Benjamin Agustimiano, Jessie Arriaga, Luis Garza, Juan Gutierrez, Emmanuel Leyva, Jose Milla, Pedro Munoz, Cinthia Parra, Julio Ruiz, Heather Shinn, Alberto Valenzuela and Aurelio Villegas.
Macuils Tire and Service Center has several locations in Little Rock -- at 14601 Arch St., 8122 Stagecoach Road, 1205-B S. University Ave. and 9401 Colonel Glenn Road.
The department said in the complaint that the business has an annual gross volume of sales and other business totalling at least $500,000.
Metro on 07/20/2018