SAN
Employees of two Indian restaurants, Jay Bharat and Standard Sweets and Snacks, located in Artesia are set to recover almost $95,000 in back wages denied by their employer, Chandrakant Patel. Federal Department of Labor investigators determined that 22 employees at Jay Bharat Foods, Inc, and Standard Sweets LLC were denied minimum wage and overtime pay in accordance with federal and state laws.
Artesia’s “Little India” on Pioneer Boulevard is home to over 100 South Asian businesses, including many popular grocery stores and restaurants like Jay Bharat and Standard Sweets and Snacks. While thousands of customers come to Pioneer Boulevard to enjoy South Asian products, they are largely unaware of the over 300 South Asian, Latino and other immigrant workers who provide an invisible service to the community by stocking stores, cooking ethnic foods and creating a cultural ambiance. As in Jay Bharat’s cases, these workers are often denied basic legal protections by their employers.
In August 2009, South Asian Network (SAN) launched a workers’ rights campaign for Pioneer Boulevard employees to be informed of their rights, take action against abuses, and help business owners comply with California labor laws as a way to build a strong Artesia business and residential community. SAN is a community-based organization located on Pioneer Boulevard dedicated to advancing the health, empowerment and solidarity of persons of South Asian descent since 1990.
At Patel’s two stores, employees worked 55 hours a week while being denied minimum wage and overtime hours. According to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA ), employees working in excess of 40 hours per week should get paid an overtime rate of time-and-a-half of their regular pay rate. Minimum wage in California is currently $8.00 an hour.
SAN for more