IT staffing firm to pay $350K for visa violations

People Tech Group Inc., an information technology staffing firm, will pay 12 employees almost $310,000 after the U.S. Department of Labor said it violated the labor provisions of the H-1B visa program by paying its guest workers below the required wages, and sometimes not paying them at all. The Redmond, Washington, employer also will pay $45,000 in civil penalties. The company paid H-1B computer programmers and analysts entry-level wages, even though they performed work of highly experienced employees and should have received a higher prevailing rate, DOL said. People Tech also did not pay the employees when it failed to provide them with work, as the law requires, according to the agency. "The resolution of this case demonstrates our commitment to safeguard American jobs, level the playing field for law-abiding employers, and ensure no one is being paid less than they are legally owed," said Wage and Hour Division acting district director Carrie Aguilar in a statement.