On January 8, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced that seventy ice manufacturing employees of San Diego Ice Company in San Diego, California and California Ice Company in Lake Elsinore, would receive over $1 million in back pay and damages after a federal investigation found the owners purposely avoided paying overtime.
According to the DOL, the companies were paying workers their regular rate even when they worked more than 40 hours a week—ignoring clear overtime laws. Some of those employees regularly worked an average of 16 hours of overtime every week for which they did not receive overtime pay rates.
The DOL recovered $527,687 in unpaid overtime plus the same amount in damages, which the companies were ordered to pay to the employees over a 12-month installment plan. The companies were also hit with $36,358 in fines for intentionally violating the law. On average, each worker will receive around $15,000.