HARTFORD, CT – The U.S. Department of Labor has reached an administrative settlement with Rhode Island’s second largest hospital and Care New England Health System to recover a total of $1.9 million in back wages and liquidated damages for 853 healthcare workers who had to work through their breaks but were not paid properly for those hours worked during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Hartford District Office of the department’s Wage and Hour Division found Kent County Memorial Hospital in Warwick automatically deducted 30-minute breaks from hours employees worked even though staffing needs kept them from taking those breaks. The division found employees in the emergency room and other departments worked more than 40 hours in a workweek but weren’t properly compensated when they worked through their breaks.“The Wage and Hour Division is eager to return the $1.9 million in wages and liquidated damages we recovered to the workers who put their needs second and delivered essential care to the many people in Rhode Island who suffered during the pandemic,” said Wage and Hour Administrator Jessica Looman. “An administrative resolution like this allows affected workers to collect their hard-earned wages promptly.” The division recovered $100,000 in civil money penalties from the hospital and Care New England Health System given the willful nature of the violations. As part of the settlement, which spans from July 30, 2019, through Dec. 31, 2022, the hospital has agreed to comply with the Fair Labor Standards Act and has made substantial changes in their timekeeping practices to prevent future violations of federal recordkeeping requirements.In fiscal year 2024, the Wage and Hour Division concluded 2,376 investigations in healthcare industries. These investigations recovered more than $37 million in back wages for nearly 30,000 workers nationwide.Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division. Workers and employers can call the division confidentially with questions – regardless of immigration status – and the division can speak with callers in more than 200 languages through the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Download the agency’s Timesheet App for iOS and Android devices – available in English and Spanish – to ensure hours and pay are accurate.