Syl’s restaurant owner fined for labor law violations

The company that owned Syl’s restaurant has been fined more than $18,000 for violating child labor laws and denying overtime pay, the U.S. Department of Labor announced Friday.

Syl’s in Rockdale, one of the area’s premier restaurants, closed earlier this month.

Premier Events & Banquets, which also manages the Renaissance Center in Joliet, illegally employed 25 minor-aged workers as bussers, runners and dishwashers after 7 p.m. on school nights and 9 p.m. on weekends, the Labor Department said in a news release. The allegations also found that some minors worked more than 18 hours a week.

Seven other workers were denied overtime pay for workweeks that exceeded 40 hours, and the Labor Department recovered $2,671 in back wages for those workers, according to the release.

The department assessed Premier $18,350 in civil penalties for violations of child labor laws.

“Child labor laws very specifically limit how many hours and at what times minors under 16 years of age can work,” Tom Gauza, district director in Chicago for the Labor Department Wage and Hour Division, said in the release. “Employers have a legal responsibility for making sure they provide a safe environment for minor-aged workers and that they do not interfere with their schooling or overall well-being.”

The investigation began in August and covered a two-year period ending Aug. 25, Labor Department spokeswoman Rhonda Burke said.

The violations only involve activities at Syl’s.

The $18,350 in civil penalties have not yet been paid, Burke said. The department “is in the process of providing the back wages to the workers” from the recovered overtime pay, she said.

Premier Events & Banquets was created by the late Don “Duke” Williams and his wife, Maura Williams. Don Williams died at Syl’s in October from what police at the time said appeared to be a heart attack.

After the death of her husband, Maura Williams said she would try to continue the business. But on Jan. 3, she announced on Facebook the closing of Syl’s.

Premier continues to hold the contract to manage Renaissance Center, which is owned by Joliet Junior College.

But a JJC spokeswoman said a week ago that negotiations are in progress for a possible change in the lease to Arkas Restaurant Group, which has five Joliet restaurants and a catering service. The city of Joliet on Jan. 17 approved a Renaissance Center liquor license for Bill Dimitroulas, president of Arkas Restaurant Group.