Feds Recover $1.1 Million For Garment Workers After Sewing Contractors Allegedly Withheld Overtime Pay

Federal regulators announced that $1.1 million in back wages and damages were recovered for 165 garment workers in Los Angeles. The settlement came after regulators reached a settlement with four sewing contractors who allegedly tried to hide that they withheld overtime wages.

The settlement is the biggest to date for California garment workers, according to the Department of Labor on Wednesday.

The contractors involved included those operated by Ramon Tecum, Marisela Romero, and Joseph Delao. The trio owned Good Cash LLC and its associated entities, Good Cash Inc., Premium Quality Apparel LLC, and Premium Quality Apparel Inc.

Federal investigators allege Tecum, Romero, and Delao had employees working 52 hours a week but failed to pay overtime wages. They’re also accused of forging payroll records and administering fake checks to conceal their illegal pay methods.

LAist contacted the attorney representing the trio through email, but did not receive an immediate response.

Department of Labor attorney Kari Panaccione said it was shocking to see the lengths the employers went to try to avoid getting caught.

“When we executed the inspection warrant, they actually turned off the power to the facility and told the employees to leave and they all rushed out of the building,” Panaccione said.

During the investigation, the department applied a "hot goods hold" on clothes made by the contractor’s workers for Beyond Yoga. The hold made it illegal to ship goods that violated the Fair Labor Standards Act or child labor laws within a 30-day window.

Panaccione said when Beyond Yoga found out about the violations, the company immediately paid $582,317 in back wages and an equal amount in damages.

It wasn’t the first time federal labor regulators encountered Tecum, Romero, and Delao. Panaccione said the trio paid back wages after an investigation revealed they violated the Fair Labor Standards Act in 2021.

“And here we were two years later with information about some of the same and some additional violations that were happening,” she said.

Panaccione said garment workers are one of the most vulnerable populations of workers. Federal regulators conducted a garment worker survey in L.A. in 2023 and found that 80% of workers were being exploited in some way or another.

Panaccione reminded workers they have the right to report labor violations to state or federal regulators.

“If they contact us, we will do everything we can to protect their confidentiality,” she said. “And they do have the right under the law, no matter the circumstances, to make complaints to us about whatever situation they're in, and their employer does not have the legal ability to punish them in any way for that.”