Walmart Warehouse Workers Sue, Claiming Unpaid Wages
A group of Illinois warehouse workers has accused two staffing firms of failing to pay employees for the hours they worked.
The alleged “wage theft” occurred at a Wal-Mart warehouse in far southwest suburban Elwood. Orlando, Fla.-based Eclipse Advantage, the staffing firm that hired the workers, was named in the suit, along with Midwest Temp Group Inc., which has office in New Lenox and Bolingbrook.
Wal-Mart was not named in the lawsuit.
Both temp companies are accused of violating the Illinois Day and Temporary Services Act.
Elwood workers claim that Eclipse Advantage promised they would be paid minimum wage, which is $8.25 an hour in Illinois, and given the ability to earn a bonus. But their paychecks, the suit said, failed to match the actual hours employees worked and did not equal minimum wage.
“If the allegations are accurate, we will require our contractor to take appropriate action immediately,” a Wal-Mart spokesman said.
The suit was filed on behalf of the warehouse employees Nov. 18 in federal court in the Northern District of Illinois by Warehouse Workers for Justice, a Chicago-based organization founded in 2008 by the United Electrical Workers. Warehouse Workers for Justice has filed three similar suits against Wal-Mart in the past two years.