Boss Who Dumped Pennies on Worker's Driveway Must Pay

An auto body shop owner who paid a worker's final wage of $915 using 91,500 oil-covered pennies has been ordered to pay $39,934 to nine workers—and authorities will likely take a dim view of any attempt to settle up using nearly 4 million greasy pennies. A federal judge last Tuesday ordered the owner of A OK Walker Luxury Autoworks in Peachtree City, Georgia, to pay back wages and an equal amount in damages to the workers, 11 Alive reports.

The legal action began as a lawsuit from the US Department of Labor accusing the body shop and owner Miles Walker of retaliating against the former employee for filing a complaint about not receiving his last paycheck. According to a department press release, investigators found that Walker had violated federal law "by paying the complainant and other employees straight-time rates for all hours worked, including for hours over 40 in a workweek when an overtime rate-of-pay was legally required."

The worker who filed the initial complaint said the pennies were dumped on his driveway with a note saying "f--- you." "The court has sent a clear message to employers such as Miles Walker who subject employees to unfair wage practices and outright intimidation and retaliation," said Department of Labor Regional Solicitor Tremelle Howard. "By law, worker engagement with the US Department of Labor is a protected activity." Walker was also ordered to remove "all photographs of, and references to" the former employee on the company website, where insulting remarks had appeared in a section titled "Pennies." (More labor laws stories.)