‘We Will Hold You Accountable’: New York Home Health Agencies to Pay $18.5 Million

One of the largest home health groups in New York has agreed to pay millions of dollars to resolve wage-and-hour violations.

The home health group is made up of Intergen Health LLC and Amazing Home Care Services LLC, which share ownership and employees. Both Intergen and Amazing Home Care primarily serve New York’s Medicaid population, according to a recent announcement from New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s office.

“In New York City, we fight to protect all workers — including those who work in people’s homes,” de Blasio said in the announcement. “Home health care workers care for our families and not only deserve paid safe and sick leave — it’s their right. To any company in New York City that thinks they can get away with withholding workers’ rights and violating our laws: We will hold you accountable.”

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The announcement — part of an ongoing home health-enforcement initiative — was made jointly with New York State Attorney General Letitia James, along with the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP).

“Home health aides provide vital support to our vulnerable loved ones,” DCWP Commissioner Peter A. Hatch said. “Sadly, these invaluable workers often face exploitative working conditions that violate important labor protections.”

A joint investigation allegedly found that Intergen Health and Amazing Home Care violated paid safe and sick leave laws in multiple ways, including failing to pay employees when they used leave or firing employees who used unscheduled leave. The home health group additionally required employees to submit documentation explaining why they’re using leave, and failed to provide a formal policy for safe and sick leave, according to New York officials.

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On top of all that, the announcement claims Intergen Health and Amazing Home Care refused to pay overtime when employees worked over 40 hours per week, miscalculated overtime rates and refused to pay workers for time spent traveling between patients.

To settle the allegations, Intergen Health and Amazing Home Care agreed to pay $18.6 million in restitution and adopt “extensive compliance measures.” The restitution will be split up into two phases.

In phase one, the home health providers will pay about $2 million to compensate 6,500 employees impacted by violations of paid safe and sick leave laws, along with four employees who were illegally fired. The providers will also pay $5.2 million to compensate roughly 12,000 employees for New York Labor Law violations.

In phase two, which is being resolved in coordination with a private lawsuit, there will be a maximum payout of about $11.5 million to live-in workers. That amount is subject to court approval.

“Home health aides are on the front lines serving the most vulnerable in our communities, yet these agencies denied them the most basic form of dignity and respect: fair pay for a hard day’s work,” Attorney General James said in the announcement. “These hardworking New Yorkers not only deserve the pay that was unfairly denied to them, but also the assurance that this won’t happen again — and that’s exactly what this agreement will do.”

The case was DCWP’s largest investigation into paid safe and sick leave violations to date. This week’s news adds to the department’s previously announced settlements with home health agencies — nearly three dozen in total.

“Let this be a warning to all employers: Exploitative and illegal labor practices will not be tolerated in New York,” James continued.

New York’s aggressive oversight of home health labor abuses began ramping up in July 2017. By September 2018, officials shared findings from an investigation into 42 home health agencies that, together, employed more than 50,000 workers.

“This is similar to what we’re seeing from the United States Department of Labor, where they have identified the home care industry as a high-risk industry with respect to its employees and their treatment,” home care legal expert Angelo Spinola told Home Health Care News at the time. “It appears that [DCWP] is intentionally identifying and targeting home care companies with the idea of sending a message to the industry that it must take [labor] laws seriously.”

HHCN was unable to reach Intergen Health and Amazing Home Care Services.

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