A federal court ordered the owners of 14 Subway locations in the Bay Area to pay employees nearly $1 million in damages and back pay and also to sell or shut their businesses.
SAN FRANCISCO -- A federal court ordered the owners of 14 Subway locations in the East Bay and North Bay to pay employees nearly $1 million in damages and back pay — and also to sell or shut their businesses, with any sale proceeds going to the Department of Labor.
Federal investigators said franchise owners John and Jessica Meza, of Brentwood, directed children as young as 14 to operate dangerous machinery, assigned minors work hours that violated federal law, and failed to pay their employees regularly, including by issuing hundreds of bad checks and illegally keeping tips left by customers.
The Labor Department also charged that the Mezas coerced employees in an attempt to prevent them from cooperating with its investigation, sometimes threatening children who attempted to raise concerns about the work environment. According to the court order, the owners acknowledged several of the Labor Department's findings. Messages left for the Mezas at email addresses included in the settlement were not immediately returned.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Business community speaks out after Target blames crime for Bay Area store closuresTarget sent shockwaves through the industry on Tuesday by saying it will close nine stores across four states due to large-scale theft. It is not clear whether the stores were under-performing or r…
Read more »
Bay Area women’s basketball community thrilled by potential WNBA expansionThe Warriors are reportedly near a deal to bring a WNBA team to the Bay Area.
Read more »
Target closing 3 Bay Area stores, blames organized retail crimeThe retail giant blamed organized retail crime and unsuccessful anti-theft measures.
Read more »
Biden talks artificial intelligence, touts fight against deadly bacteria during Bay Area visitThat Biden is paying attention to AI is more important than whether he fully understands the technology and its broad spectrum of applications, said Steve Blank, an adjunct professor of management …
Read more »
Bay Area woman overcomes rare auto-immune disorder to set push-up world recordHolly Reese is no amateur when it comes to push-ups
Read more »
Bay Area high school students volunteering with search and rescue operationKenny Choi reports on a volunteer search and rescue operation in the Bay Area that is getting help from high school students.
Read more »