AG’S OFFICE CITES GEORGIA-BASED LIFEGUARD SERVICES COMPANY FOR LABOR VIOLATIONS, SECURES $70,000 IN RESTITUTION FOR WORKERS

AG’S OFFICE CITES GEORGIA-BASED LIFEGUARD SERVICES COMPANY FOR LABOR VIOLATIONS, SECURES $70,000 IN RESTITUTION FOR WORKERS  

Company Intentionally Misclassified Employees as Independent Contractors and Violated Other Wage and Hour Laws 

 

BOSTON – Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell announced today that her office has issued eight citations, totaling nearly $70,000 in restitution and penalties, against USA Management, LLC, a Georgia-based company which provides pool repair and lifeguard services to clients in Massachusetts and across the country.  

 

The company, USA Management, was cited for failure to furnish true and accurate payroll records, failure to make timely payment of wages, the intentional misclassification of employees as independent contractors, failing to provide employees a meal break after six hours of work, failure to obtain a work permit for minor employees, not permitting employees to utilize earned sick leave and failure to furnish a suitable pay slip.   

 

“Workers in Massachusetts are entitled to fair wages and treatment from their employers under our state labor laws,” AG Campbell said. “As we push for greater economic mobility for our residents, my office will continue to protect workers from exploitative workplace practices and violations of wage and hour laws.” 

 

In July 2021, the AG’s Fair Labor Division received complaints alleging that USA Management had failed to pay wages to several employees working as lifeguards in Worcester, Massachusetts. The investigation revealed that several employees from Worcester were illegally hired as independent contractors, did not receive earned sick leave, did not receive paystubs, were denied the ability to take meal breaks when working six or more hours and were unpaid for hours worked. It is believed that even more employees have been affected by the alleged actions of USA Management.  

 

In January 2023, the state’s minimum wage increased to $15 per hour. Under Massachusetts state law, all workers are presumed to be employees, unless employers can demonstrate that the work is done without the direction and control of the employer, is performed outside the usual course of the employer’s business and is performed by someone who has their own independent trade or business. Most workers in Massachusetts have the right to earn and use up to 40 hours of job-protected sick time per year to take care of themselves and certain family members.   

 

In her inaugural address last month, AG Campbell announced her commitment to building economic prosperity for Massachusetts residents by combatting wage theft.   

 

Workers who believe that their rights have been violated in their workplace are encouraged to file a complaint at www.mass.gov/ago/fairlabor. For information about the state’s wage and hour laws, workers may call the AG’s Fair Labor Hotline at (617) 727-3465 or go to Workplace Rights website for materials in 12 languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, and Chinese. 

 

This matter was handled by Assistant Attorney General Amy Goyer and Investigator Cindy Molina, from the AG’s Fair Labor Division.