In Broadgate v. Su, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit rejected an appeal of an order in which the Department of Labor (DOL) had issued a determination letter finding that the company had willfully violated the Immigration and Nationality Act by not paying required wages to H-1B employees and not posting required notices, among other violations. The letter barred Broadgate from participating in the H-1B program for two years, required Broadgate to pay back wages of more than $31,000, and assessed a “civil penalty” of about $68,000.
Broadgate sought review before an Administrative Law Judge, challenging only the determination that Broadgate had willfully failed to post certain workplace notices. Later, on remand before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), Broadgate made a new argument: that DOL’s Wage and Hour Division “had exceeded its authority by investigating violations (failure to post required notices) that had not been alleged in the employee’s original complaint (which alleged nonpayment of required wages).” The ALJ rejected that argument and affirmed the DOL’s imposition of fines and penalties. The Review Board affirmed, as did the district court. This appeal followed. The Sixth Circuit affirmed the lower courts’ decisions and rejected Broadgate’s arguments, upholding DOL’s actions.