DOL Recovers $594K for 419 Construction Workers After Employer's Time Clock Rounding Shaved Their Overtime

On May 27, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor announced that Amtex-NMS Inc., a construction contractor operating as Southeast Modular Manufacturing out of Leesburg, Florida, had been ordered to pay $594,313 in back wages and damages to 419 workers. The violation was one that millions of American workers experience every day but most don't even realize is illegal: the company's time clock rounding system was consistently reducing recorded hours, which resulted in workers not getting paid overtime they were owed.

That works out to roughly $1,400 per worker — for what probably looked like a few minutes here and there on a timesheet.

How Time Clock Rounding Steals Your Money

Here's how it works. A lot of employers use rounding to "even out" time punches for payroll purposes. You clock in at 6:53 — the system rounds you to 7:00. You clock out at 3:07 — the system rounds you back to 3:00. On paper, it looks like you worked an even 8-hour shift. In reality, you worked 8 hours and 14 minutes. And those 14 minutes just vanished from your paycheck.

The law actually permits rounding — but only if the rounding is neutral over time. That means it has to go both ways. Sometimes the rounding should benefit you, and sometimes it should benefit your employer. If it averages out fairly, it's legal. If it consistently rounds in the employer's favor, it's wage theft.

That's exactly what the DOL found at Amtex-NMS. The company's rounding methods "improperly reduced hours that resulted in unpaid overtime for hours worked over 40 per workweek." In other words, the rounding wasn't neutral. It was systematically eating into workers' time — and when that stolen time pushed them past 40 hours in a week, it meant they were losing overtime pay they were entitled to at time-and-a-half.

The DOL also found that Amtex-NMS violated federal recordkeeping requirements by failing to maintain complete and accurate records of workers' wages and hours. That's a separate violation under the FLSA, and it's one that often goes hand-in-hand with rounding abuses — because if the employer isn't keeping accurate records, it's a lot harder for workers to prove what they actually worked.

This Isn't Just a Florida Problem

If you work for any employer that uses a time clock system — and especially if your employer rounds your punches — this case should have your attention.

Time clock rounding is everywhere. Hospitals, factories, warehouses, construction sites, restaurants, retail stores. Anywhere hourly workers punch a clock, there's an employer using rounding. And in my experience, most of these systems are not neutral. They're programmed to benefit the employer, not the worker.

Think about your own situation. When you clock in a few minutes early, does the system round you forward to the start of your shift? And when you clock out a few minutes late, does the system round you back? If the answer to both of those is yes, your employer's rounding system is probably not working both ways — and you're probably losing money every single shift.

A few minutes a day doesn't sound like much. But do the math across a week, a month, a year — across several years — and it adds up fast. For the 419 workers at Amtex-NMS, it added up to nearly $600,000. And that's just one employer in one town in Florida.

What You Can Recover

Under the FLSA, if your employer has been using rounding to shortchange your overtime pay, you may be entitled to:

Back pay for all unpaid overtime going back two years from the date you file your claim — or three years if the violation was willful.

Liquidated damages equal to the amount of back pay you're owed, which effectively doubles your recovery. The FLSA provides for liquidated damages as a default — the employer has to prove good faith to avoid them.

Attorney's fees and costs paid by your employer. This means you can pursue an FLSA claim with no out-of-pocket cost to you.

The per-worker average in the Amtex-NMS case was around $1,400. That may not sound life-changing — but that's in a case where the DOL investigated and settled. In a private lawsuit, with a larger class and a longer look-back period, the numbers can be significantly higher. A recent case in Washington state involving similar time clock rounding practices resulted in a judgment exceeding $229 million for more than 33,000 workers.

What You Should Do

If your employer uses a time clock and you suspect your hours are being rounded down, start paying attention. Look at your actual clock-in and clock-out times — if your system shows them — and compare them to what appears on your paycheck. If there's a gap, and it's consistently in your employer's favor, you may have a claim.

You can also contact the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division directly at 1-866-4-US-WAGE (1-866-487-9243). The DOL has a free Timesheet App for Android and iPhone that lets you independently track your hours so you have your own records.

And if you want to talk to a lawyer about your situation, we're here. At Simpson, PLLC, we represent workers in FLSA overtime cases across the country, including time clock rounding claims.

Contact us today for a free consultation.

This blog post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. If you have questions about your pay structure or wage rights, please contact our office for a consultation.

Simpson, PLLC 100 Parkgate Dr., Ext. Suite 205 Tupelo, MS 38801 jack@simpson-pllc.com | (662) 913-7811