Feds: Upper Crust pizza owes workers $850,000

BOSTON (AP) — Court records indicate that a bankrupt Boston-based gourmet pizza parlor chain owes employees about $850,000 in back pay and damages.

According to court records filed by the U.S. Labor Department, a federal investigation of pay practices at Upper Crust between April 2009 and January 2011 found the company violated minimum wage and overtime laws and failed to pay 67 employees roughly $425,000 during that period.

The Boston Globe (http://bo.st/Qnv4Id ) reports that Upper Crust owes an equal amount in damages, as well as $37,000 in civil penalties.

The business, with 176 employees, sought bankruptcy protection in October after facing persistent labor problems, financial troubles, and ownership disputes.

Upper Crust has 16 locations left after four restaurants shut down in the past year.

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Information from: The Boston Globe, http://www.boston.com/globe

Cox Media Group