Asmussen Racing Stables has agreed with a proposed settlement order to pay $600,000 back in wages and penalties after violating the Fair Labor Standards Act for failing to pay overtime to 170 employees, PETA has revealed.
The violation took place between 2016 and 2020 where grooms and hot walkers at New York State tracks missed out on overtime completed when working for the racing stables.
However, during the investigation PETA revealed this was not the first time Asmussen Racing Stables have been ordered to pay fines. In 2015 there was a fine for abuse to a horse and another for failure to pay fair wages.
PETA’s investigation revealed that Asmussen and assistant trainer Scott Blasi misused medications, ordered undocumented workers to obtain fake identification and Social Security cards or quit, demanded long hours of workers for little pay, and forced undocumented laborers to sleep in barns and tack rooms.
PETA also identified a third lawsuit brought by the U.S. Department of Labor against Asmussen Racing Stables and that the horse-training industry is rife with labor violations. In 2020, trainer George Weaver settled with the agency for $425,000 after it said that he had failed to pay employees the required hourly wage and for overtime. And in 2019, trainer Chad Brown, who has won four consecutive Eclipse Awards for outstanding trainer, paid $1,617,673 for violations that included failing to provide wages promised and misrepresenting job terms and conditions.
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