Full opinion text
FINDINGS OF FACT, DISCUSSION, CONCLUSIONS OF LAW AND ORDER HUYETT, District Judge. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION. FINDINGS OF FACT I. Corporate Structure. II. Employment of Minors. III. Deduction of Time for Lunch Breaks. IV. JPM. A. Classification 200 . B. Classifications 201 and 202 . C. Classification 203 . D. Classification 300 . E. Classification 301. V. Hoch Sanitation . A. Classifications 200, 201, 202 and 300. B. Classifications 303 and 305 . C. Classification 306 . VI. Lackawanna Transport Drivers . VII. Interstate Commerce Exemption. VIII. Evidence Related to the Liquidated Damages Claim FTSOTTSSTON I. Post-Trial Motions. 918 A. The Secretary’s Motion to Amend. B. Defendants’ Motion for Directed Verdict. II.Undisputed Issues. A. Defendant Corporations Constitute An Enterprise B. Pat, Mike and Joe Mascaro Are Employers. C. Employment of Minors. III. Disputed Issues. A. Minimum Wage Violations and Lunch Deduction B. Recordkeeping Violations. C. Overtime Violations. D. Statute of Limitations. IV. Defenses . V.Injunctive Relief. A. Liquidated Damages. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW. INTRODUCTION This action is brought by the Secretary of Labor to enjoin the individual defendants and defendant corporations they own and control from violating sections 6, 7, 11, 12, and 15 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, 29 U.S.C. § 201, et seq. [hereinafter, the Act or the FLSA]. The complaint seeks injunctive relief, backwages, and an award of liquidated damages pursuant to section 16(c) of the Act, 29 U.S.C. § 216(c). During the period covered by the complaint, January, 1985 through February, 1989, defendants employed over 300 individuals in the solid waste disposal industry. The vast majority of these individuals are covered by the FLSA. Complexity is added to what would have been a relatively straightforward case by defendants’ corporate structure and payroll practices. In three separate “divisions,” defendants maintain at least twenty-five separate payroll classifications. Trial without a jury was held over eleven days in February and March, 1989. During the course of pre-trial proceedings, it became clear that this is essentially a factual dispute in which the result turns largely upon the credibility of the witnesses and the accuracy of the Secretary’s methods of computing overtime wages due employees. In addition to voluminous documentary exhibits, testimony from sixty-five witnesses was presented. The parties also submitted pre- and post-trial motions, briefs, and proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law. In the post-trial motions, the Secretary moves to amend the complaint to add Lack-awanna Transport, Inc. as a defendant and to include employees employed by it in the action. Because I will grant plaintiff’s motion to amend the complaint, I shall include Lackawanna Transport, Inc. as a defendant in making the findings of fact and the caption of the action will be amended accordingly. Defendants move to strike the Secretary’s request for liquidated damages under section 16(c) of the Act. Because the substance of this motion should have been raised as a demand for a jury trial in advance of trial, I will deny defendants’ motion. I will discuss these motions further below. FINDINGS OF FACT Pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 52(a), I make the following findings of fact: 1. Corporate Structure 1. Defendants are engaged in the trash removal and solid waste disposal industry. Notes of Testimony, March 23, 1989 at 70-71. 2. J.P. Mascaro & Sons, Inc. was incorporated in or about 1970. The original shareholders were J.P. Mascaro, Joe Mas-caro, Frank Mascaro, Lou Mascaro, Mike Mascaro, and Pasquale (“Pat”) Mascaro. N.T., 3/23 at 74. 3. Hoch Sanitation, Inc. was formed by the Mascaros in late 1984 or early 1985. N.T., 3/23 at 75. 4. Lackawanna Transport Company, Inc. was formed by the Mascaros in late 1985 or early 1986. N.T., 3/23 at 76. 5. On or about January 1, 1987, the Mascaros formed Solid Waste Services, Inc. On or about the same date, J.P. Mascaro & Sons, Inc., Hoch Sanitation, Inc., and Lack-awanna Transport Company, Inc. became owned and controlled by Solid Waste Services, Inc. (“Solid Waste”). Each of the predecessor companies became an operating division of Solid Waste. N.T., 3/23 at 76-78. 6. At all times relevant to this action, these companies were owned and controlled by Joseph P. Mascaro, Mike M. Mascaro and Pat Mascaro (collectively, the “Masca-ros”). 7. The business affairs of all defendants are operated together. The operating divisions of Solid Waste, defendants Hoch Sanitation, Inc. (“Hoch”), Lackawan-na Transport, Inc. (“Lackawanna”), and J.P. Mascaro & Sons, Inc. (“JPM”) share the same officers and controller. N.T. 3/27 at 96, 3/23 at 74-76, 78. The payroll system for all defendants is operated from the corporate headquarters by a payroll clerk. N.T., 3/23 at 83. At the operating centers, payroll data is compiled on a daily basis. Id. 8. Lou and Frank Mascaro are not actively engaged in the management of the companies’ affairs. N.T., 3/23 at 84. Pat, Joe, and Mike Mascaro are employers, as defined by section 3(d) of the Act, 29 U.S.C. § 203(d), of the employees listed on schedules A, B, and C of the complaint as amended by plaintiffs motion to amend during trial. Court Exhibit 1 at ¶3; N.T., 3/23 at 82-83. 9. Pat Mascaro sets pay practices for employees, N.T., 3/27 at 38, and the budget for payroll. N.T., 3/27 at 84. 10. Joe Mascaro manages existing facilities, oversees the construction of new facilities and purchasing. N.T., 3/23 at 82. Joe also informs employees about wage rates and practices. N.T., 2/22 at 137. 11. Mike Mascaro manages the defendants’ business in Montgomery County. N.T., 3/23 at 82. He hires employees for Lackawanna, N.T., 2/22 at 94, directs employees’ work hours, N.T., 2/22 at 87; 3/23 at 37; 3/20 at 74, and sets wage rates for Lackawanna employees. N.T., 2/21 at 119; 3/20 at 58; 3/23 at 37. He also answers employee inquiries concerning wages and employment policies. Id. II. Employment of Minors 12. The following minors were employed by defendants: Age when Employed Citation Date of Name Birth GX 24 Vernon Wright 10/30/69 I — GX 24, DX 4 Troy Schneck 11/5/71 h- N.T., 2/22 at 48 E. Hardy n/a h- Id. J. Hardy n/a I — N.T., 3/8 at 61. H. Reynolds 1/20/70 ► — N.T., 3/8 at 58. J. Reynolds 11/6/68 H- 13. Wright, Schneck, Reynolds, and the Hardys were employed by Hoch as pickers or truck loaders. In those capacities, they worked on the exterior of motor vehicles loading trash while the vehicle traveled on public roads. III. Deduction of Time for Lunch Breaks 14. Solid Waste and its operating divisions deducted one-half hour per day from the pay of all hourly employees for a lunch break. DX 1 at 9; N.T., 3/8 at 46; 3/13 at 8, 29; 3/21 at 27. 15. Defendants’ general manager testified that the half hour is deducted whether or not the employee actually takes the break. N.T., 3/21 at 53. 16. The employee policy manual states: Each employee must take a thirty (30) minute lunch period every day. Employees are not allowed to work through lunch without prior approval from your supervisor. The lunch period must be indicated on the daily time record. DX 1 at 9. 17. Despite this written policy, there is overwhelming credible evidence that defendants actively discouraged employees from taking a lunch break. 18. Employees were threatened with termination if they took too long to complete a load; the threats discouraged employees from taking the meal break. N.T., 3/7 at 17, 3/8 at 16-17; 3/13 at 7-8. On one occasion, Joe Mascaro responded to a delay at the Souderton yard caused by employees leaving their work to get lunch by saying, “We’ll get them on the ball, we do not take lunch breaks around here.” N.T., 3/7 at 20. When at the yard during lunch periods, truck driver employees were told to stay with their trucks. N.T., 3/13 at 45. 19. The per trip pay system, the long hours required to fulfill job requirements, and time restrictions at landfills discouraged tractor-trailer drivers from eating other than while working. N.T., 2/22 at 57, 72, 88, 119-20; 2/23 at 16, 24; 3/20 at 6; 3/23 at 48. 20. In response to the practices of defendants and the work requirements, the vast majority of employees did not take a regular half hour lunch break. N.T., 2/22 at 43, 72, 119-20, 138, 165; 3/7 at 17, 19; 3/8 at 7, 38-39; 3/13 at 7, 25-26; 3/20 at 6; 3/23 at 40, 48. Most employees ate while performing work related tasks. N.T., 2/22 at 18, 72, 88, 165; 2/23 at 16, 24, 27; 3/7 at 19, 23, 33; 3/8 at 7, 38-39; 3/13 at 7-8, 22; 3/20 at 6, 28-29; 3/21 at 79-80; 3/23 at 40, 48. 21. Through cross-examination, defendants attempted to establish that all employees did take a lunch break on at least sporadic occasions. 22. The Secretary’s evidence establishes that the defendants were not justified in uniformly deducting the 2lk hours per week per employee. 23. Accordingly, the Secretary’s compliance officer’s calculation that employees are entitled to 2lh hours per week of additional compensation for the time defendants wrongfully deducted as a lunch break is reasonable. IV. JPM 24. The employee classifications of this division relevant to this case are 200 rear loader drivers; 201 front loader drivers; 202 roll-off drivers; 203 tractor-trailer drivers; 300 pickers; and 301 station laborers. CX 1, CX 2. A. Classification 200 25. Classification 200 employees are rear-end loader route drivers in Norris-town, Ambler, and Jenkintown, Pennsylvania and other municipalities. Employees in this category are listed in GX 9 and GX 25. There are approximately 25 employees in this class. 26. These employees were paid a day rate or salary that was based incorrectly on a fluctuating work week method of computing wages. N.T., 3/7 at 29; 3/13 at 21-22, 102-05; 3/21 at 49-51. 27. Hours worked were not recorded for these employees. N.T., 3/7 at 32; 3/8 at 89; 3/13 at 22. 28. These employees generally began work between 5:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. 3/7 at 28; 3/8 at 85; 3/13 at 20. They generally concluded work between 5:00 p.m. and midnight. N.T., 3/7 at 28-29; 3/8 at 85; 3/13 at 23. 29. This period of time is corroborated by the periods of time that the pickers generally worked when the extra duties of the drivers are considered. One picker testified that he met the truck around 5:00 a.m., and generally finished his route between 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. N.T., 3/8 at 138-39. 30. Defendants introduced the testimony of Ron Kershner, a management employee who worked for a short period as a Norristown route driver. N.T., 3/23 at 5, 8. Based on the short period of time Kershner worked as a driver, his current position as a management employee, and my observation of him at trial, I do not find credible his testimony that the routes could be generally completed in seven and one-half to eight hours. 31. Based on credible testimony, classification 200 employees worked an average twelve hour day for the days their payroll records reflect they were paid. N.T., 3/7 at 28; 3/8 at 85; 3/13 at 23. 32. Classification 200 employees did not receive time and a half wages for hours worked in excess of 40 hours worked per week. These employees are entitled to time and one-half wages for hours worked in a week over 40. 33. Employees in this classification generally did not take lunch. Finding 23. 34. Accordingly, I find that classification 200 employees worked 60 hour weeks, and did not take the 2lk hours per week lunch breaks which were deducted from their pay. 35. The Secretary’s compliance officer’s calculations of wages due classification 200 employees in GX 9, GX 25, Appendix D and Appendix F (submitted post-trial) are not consistent with the evidence adduced at trial. B. Classifications 201 and 202 36. Classification 201 employees are front-loader drivers. Employees in this category are listed in GX 6 and GX 25. There are 27 employees in this class. 37. Classification 202 employees are “roll-off” drivers. Employees in this category are listed in GX 7 and GX 25. There are 59 employees in this class. 38. Many employees in these classifications did not record their own hours. N.T., 3/7 at 18, 3/8 at 16, 32, 37, 47, 87; 3/13 at 5, 26. Some employees in these classifications did not know when their time cards were being punched. N.T., 3/7 at 18. Many employees performed work related tasks before their time cards were punched in, or after their time cards were punched out. N.T., 3/7 at 18; 3/8 at 15-16, 19, 37, 87, 88; 3/13 at 5-7, 16-17, 27-28. 39. On some occasions, when employees returned from their routes, they were not punched out when their duties were completed because they did not have access to their time cards, and management personnel had left for the day. N.T., 3/8 at 30-31, 41, 51; 3/13 at 16. 40. Some employees in these classifications credibly testified that the hours reflected in their paychecks did not correspond to the hours they actually worked. N.T., 3/8 at 48; 3/13 at 9, 28. 41. The Secretary has computed back-wages for employees in these categories for the period from January, 1985 to June 24, 1987. GX 6, 7, 25. 42. Defendants offered the testimony of several witnesses to show that employees in these classes punched their own time cards. However, some of these witnesses testified that they did not punch their own time cards during the times at which the Secretary is seeking backwages. N.T., 3/20 at 131, 136, 153. Others were not employed by defendants during the relevant time period. N.T., 3/20 at 118, 127; 3/21 at 16. Thus, defendants offered no testimony that conflicts with that of the Secretary’s witnesses on the issue of time card punching during the January, 1985 to June, 1987 period. 43. Defendants have produced no time records for employees in these classifications. 44. Accordingly, I find that the credible testimony establishes that employees in classifications 201 and 202 worked an average of 2V2 hours per week in work related tasks that were not reflected in the employee’s time cards and paychecks. This time was spent performing an average of one-half hour per day of work related tasks before and after the employee’s time cards were punched in or out. Any difference between the actual time spent before or after the time cards were punched in or out and this half hour is attributable to the inaccurately recorded hours worked. 45. The Secretary’s compliance officer calculated an average five hours per week of uncompensated time for employees in these classifications. GX 6; GX 7; 3/13 at 91, 98-101. This estimate includes the 2lh hours of additional work time and 2V2 hours of time that the defendants deducted for lunch breaks not taken. Finding 23. This estimate is reasonable, conservative and consistent with the evidence adduced during trial. 46. Employees in these classifications received overtime pay for hours worked in excess of 40 during one week. N.T., 3/13 at 143-44; 3/23 at 96. C. Classification 203 47. Classification 203 employees are tractor-trailer drivers. Employees in this category are shown on GX 4, GX 20 and GX 25. There are approximately 68 employees in this class. 48. Payroll records for these employees reflect the number of trips per employee per week. GX 5, 19, 20, 25. 49. No records of hours worked were kept for classification 203 tractor-trailers drivers. They did not punch a time clock. N.T., 2/22 at 57-58, 72-73, 89, 144, 156-57, 165; 2/23 at 7, 24-25. 50. Until approximately November, 1987, employees in classification 203 drove tractor-trailer rigs back and forth between the company’s transfer facility at Souder-ton, Pennsylvania and the Keystone Landfill at Dunmoore, Pennsylvania. This distance is approximately 105 miles one way. N.T., 2/22 at 60, 138 51. Classification 203 drivers were paid on a per-trip basis at the rate of $40 per trip. During the average full work week, each driver made approximately eleven trips, two each day during the week and one on Saturday. N.T., 2/22 at 56, 72, 129, 141, 153, 164; 2/23 at 3, 11. 52. Many of these employees began work by arriving at the landfill with a full load or would pick-up a full load near the landfill between 4:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. N.T., 2/22 at 78, 80, 116, 130, 154, 160. 53. The Keystone Landfill began allowing trucks to dump at various times between 5:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. 54. On days when the weather caused delays at the landfill, it could take up to four hours for a truck to be emptied at the landfill. N.T., 2/22 at 122, 131,; 2/23 at 13. 55. During the period immediately prior to the landfill’s closing, drivers experienced significant delays while their loads were checked by environmental authorities. N.T., 2/22 at 70, 124. 56. Accordingly, I find that the time spent at the landfill per trip averaged three-quarters of an hour, or forty-five minutes. 57. At the Souderton transfer station, drivers performed maintenance checks of the trailers, refueled their rigs and completed paperwork as they dropped off the empty trailers and picked up a full trailer. On some occasions, drivers experienced significant delays at the Souderton yard while they waited for full trailers. N.T., 2/22 at 81-82, 144, 147, 156, 162; 2/23 at 6-7, 20, 22. 58. Accordingly, I find that the drivers averaged one-half hour per trip engaged in work related duties at the Souderton yard. 59. The one way driving time from Souderton to the landfill was two and one-half hours on average. N.T., 2/22 at 61, 73, 132, 143, 151, 155; 2/23 at 6, 13; 3/21 at 57. 60. One defense witness, John Smith, testified that it took “a good four hours” to complete “the whole shooting match.” N.T., 3/21 at 84, 94. This witness also inferred that he was more than willing to break the speed limit to accomplish this feat. Id. at 94. This statement, coupled with my observation of the witness during his testimony, forces me to find that John Smith was not a credible witness. 61. Some drivers experienced significant delays occasionally caused by mechanical failures in their rigs. N.T., 2/22 at 55-56, 75, 133-34, 145-46; 2/23 at 5. 62. Accordingly, I find that the credible testimony establishes that the average total round trip time, including all work related tasks, was six and one-quarter hours. This includes five hours of driving time, three-quarters of an hour at the landfill, and one-half hour at the Souderton yard. 63. Given eleven trips per week at six and one-quarter hours per trip, classification 203 drivers worked approximately 68 and % hours per week. 64. Classification 203 drivers worked weeks longer than 40 hours consistently. Defendants did not pay these employees time and one-half their regular rate of pay for hours worked in excess of 40 in a week. N.T., 2/22 at 56, 72, 134, 146, 158, 164; 2/23 at 8, 17, 22-30. 65. Employees who inquired about pay for time spent waiting at landfills or at the Souderton yard were told that they were paid on a “per trip” basis regardless of the hours it took to complete each trip. N.T., 2/22 133, 158; 2/23 at 23-24. D. Classification 300 66. Classification 300 employees are trash pickers in Norristown, Pennsylvania and other municipalities. CX 2. There are approximately 69 employees in this classification. GX 5, 25. 67. Employees in this classification are paid on a day rate basis. N.T., 3/8 at 125. 68. The Secretary presented one employee witness from this class, Donald Dor-man, Jr. N.T., 3/8 at 120. 69. Dorman credibly testified that he typically began his work day at approximately 5:00 a.m. and ended work for the day between 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. N.T., 3/8 at 138-39. 70. In the middle of the working day, after the trash truck was filled with the first load of the day, Dorman would be allowed to return to his home for approximately three hours. N.T., 3/8 at 126-28. 71. A Norristown route truck driver credibly testified that he regularly left his pickers in Norristown while the driver traveled to Souderton to empty his truck. N.T., 3/7 at 26. 72. Defendants’ management employee witnesses Pat Thornhill and Ron Kershner credibly testified that employees in this classification were allowed to go home while the truck on which they were working was being dumped at Souderton. N.T., 3/23 at 6-7; 3/21 at 45. 73. Therefore, employees in classification 300 had ample opportunity to take a lunch break during the day and are not entitled to compensation for 2lk hours of time for lunch breaks not taken. 74. Through the one employee witness in this classification, the Secretary did present evidence that one picker, James Eubanks remained with his driver while the truck was emptied. N.T., 3/8 at 123-24, 127. 75. However, the Secretary produced no evidence that Eubanks was required to ride with the driver as part of his job, or that Eubanks performed any work related tasks while he was riding with the driver. 76. Accordingly, the evidence at trial does not establish that any employees in classification 300 worked over 40 hours in a week and were not compensated for overtime hours worked in a week in excess of 40. 77. Pat Mascaro testified that some employees in this classification who met their driver at the Souderton yard punched a time clock at that facility. N.T., 3/23 at 91. 78. Defendants did not introduce any time records for these employees at trial. 79. Pat Mascaro further testified that employees who met their drivers on the routes in the municipalities did not punch a time clock. N.T., 3/23 at 91. 80. Based on this testimony, the failure of defendants to produce any time records for these employees during trial, and the overall practices of defendants concerning the keeping of time records for other classifications of employees, I find that defendants did not keep time records for employees in classification 300. E. Classification 301 81. Classification 301 employees include yard laborers at the Souderton transfer station. CX 2. However, at least one employee in this class was a driver. GX 5 (Martin Schmidt). 82. The Secretary presented one witness, James Reynolds, Jr. from this class. N.T., 3/8 at 57. I found him a candid and credible witness. His testimony was corroborated by the statements of other witnesses. 83. Reynolds testified that he worked as a “yard jockey” from June, 1986 to December, 1986. Id. at 58. 84. Reynolds did not punch his time card. It was punched by his supervisors. Id. at 62-63. Frequently, the supervisor punched Reynolds out when he (the supervisor) left for the day. Id. at 64. 85. This testimony is consistent with that of the truck drivers who utilized the Souderton yard during this time period. Findings 57, 62, 64. 86. On many occasions, Reynolds and the other laborers with whom he worked continued work after the supervisor left for periods of two to four hours. Id. at 63-65, 74. 87. Reynolds worked with Bob Bedford, Mike Engdahl, Frankie Brown, Chris Eng-dahl, Daniel Engdahl, his brother, Danny Basco, and another employee, Kip (last name unknown). Id. at 66. These employees worked the same hours Reynolds did. 88. Because of the nature of his work, and the constant arrival of trucks to be dumped, these employees did not receive a lunch break. Id. at 67. This is corroborated by the testimony of the truck drivers who dumped at the Souderton yard during this time period. Findings 20, 23. 89. Defendants produced no evidence which controverted Reynolds testimony for the period prior to January, 1987. 90. Defendants introduced the testimony of two witnesses who worked in the yard subsequent to January, 1987. Joseph C. Todd, Sr., began working at the yard on August 19, 1987. N.T., 3/20 at 138. Jefferey A. Thompson began working in the Souderton yard in January, 1988. Id. at 162-63. Defendants also introduced the testimony of Samuel E. Smith, who was the Souderton yard manager from November, 1987 to January, 1989. N.T., 3/21 at 22-23. 91. These employees testified that yard employees punched their own time cards for the period during which they had knowledge of the yard and that the time cards accurately reflect the time each employee worked. N.T., 3/20 at 140-42, 158-59; 3/21 at 25. 92. These employees also testified that they regularly took a one-half hour lunch break during the period of their employment. N.T., 3/20 at 146, 159; see also 3/23 at 2-3. 93. The defendants have produced no evidence to controvert that of the Secretary’s that before August, 1987, classification 301 employees regularly worked hours “off the clock” and through their lunch hours. 94. Accordingly, I find that classification 301 employees who worked in the Souderton yard prior to August, 1987 are entitled to compensation for an average of three hours per day for time not recorded on their time cards, or fifteen hours per week, and two and one-half hours per week for time deducted from their pay for a lunch break which they did not take. To the extent that when this additional 17V2 hours is added to the hours shown on the defendants’ time records for each employee, the total exceeds 40 hours worked in a week, the employee is entitled to compensation at time and one-half his regular rate of pay. This estimate is reasonable and consistent with the evidence adduced at trial. 95. The Secretary seeks compensation for three employees shown as classification 301 employees, Joann Imalka, Sharon Le-vandowski and Deborah Tomazewski, who worked as dispatchers at the Souderton yard. GX 25. The defendants’ records show that these employees were paid on a salary basis with no overtime wages paid for hours worked in a week over 40, and that no time records were kept for these employees. 96. The defendants knew the Secretary was seeking compensation for these employees and defendants produced no evidence concerning these employees. 97. The total evidence presented at trial supports a finding that these employees were not performing management tasks. 98. Given the failure of the defendants to provide any evidence concerning these employees, an estimate of five additional hours per week worked in excess of 40 is reasonable and justified by the evidence adduced at trial. This reasonable and very conservative estimate is derived from the hours worked by the yard employees, the truck drivers whom these employees were presumably dispatching, and the strong likelihood that these employees were required to perform job related tasks while they ate lunch on numerous occasions. 99. Classification 301 employee Homer Butler was employed as a mechanic for two years at the Keystone landfill by J.P. Mas-caro and Lackawanna. 3/20 at 96-97. Butler was paid a salary of $600.00 per week and was not paid a premium for hours worked in excess of 40 per week. Id. at 98-99. 100. No records of Butler’s hours worked were maintained. Id. at 102. 101. Butler was a mechanic who completed some minor paperwork, and did not perform management functions. Id. at 103-104. 102. Butler credibly testified that he reported to work at the landfill between 4:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m., id. at 97, 99, and completed his job generally at 3:00 p.m. Id. at 97. Butler’s presence at the landfill during these hours was corroborated by the testimony of the drivers who dumped at the landfill. On average, Butler worked an additional hour twice a week. Id. at 98-99. He generally took a thirty to forty-five minute lunch break. Id. at 103. 103. Accordingly, I find that Butler worked an average 57 hours per week, with 17 hours of overtime each week. The Secretary has calculated backwages due Butler based on a 57 hour week. GX 25. This average is based on Butler’s credible and uncontradicted testimony. It is reasonable and conservative. V. Hoch Sanitation 104. The employee classifications relevant to this case are 200 rear loader drivers; 201 front loader drivers; 202 roll-off drivers; 300 Borough Pickers; 303 Allentown Pickers; 305 Allentown Drivers; and 306 Northern Division employees. CX 1, 2. A. Classifications 200, 201, 202 and 300 105. Classification 200 employees are rear-loader drivers. CX 1, 2. There are approximately ten employees in this class. GX 16, 26, 26A. 106. Classification 201 employees are front-loader drivers. CX 1, 2. There are approximately six employees in this class. GX 15, 26, 26A. 107. Classification 202 employees are roll-off drivers. CX 1, 2. There are approximately five employees in this class. GX 17, 26A. 108. Classification 300 employees are laborers and pickers in the “Borough” division. CX 1, 2. There are approximately twenty employees in this class. GX 13, 26. 109. Employees in these classifications were paid an overtime premium wage of a base hourly rate plus one-half the rate for hours worked in a week in excess of 40. N.T., 3/7 at 73, 75; 3/8 at 10. 110. Further, these employees were paid an additional “bonus,” which was a flat payment, for performing extra work, such as additional trips or routes. N.T., 3/7 at 74-75; 3/8 at 11. 111. The defendants’ payroll records reflect that these employees were paid a half time premium for hours worked over 40 in a week. Further, the records reflect that these employees were paid additional “bonus” payments for the performance of additional work. GX 13, 15, 16, 17, 26, 26A. The “bonus” payments were not included in computing the employees’ regular rate of pay for purposes of computing the proper overtime premium wage. N.T., 3/16 at 34-35, 37-38, 38-39, 39-40. 112. The Secretary’s compliance officer calculated additional overtime for these employees based on inclusion of the “bonus” payments in the employees’ regular rate of pay. Id. 113. Accordingly, I find that the method used by the Secretary in calculating the regular rate of pay and the overtime wages due for these employees is reasonable. B. Classifications 303 and 305 114. Classification 303 employees are pickers in the City of Allentown. CX 1, 2. There are approximately 131 employees in this class. These employees are listed in GX 11, 26, and 26A. 115. Classification 305 employees drive rear-end loaders in the City of Allentown. CX 1, 2. There are approximately 51 employees in this class. These employees are listed in GX 14, 26 and 26A. 116. Classification 303 and 305 employees were paid on a day rate basis. Classification 303 employees were paid $45 per day, and classification 305 employees were paid $75 per day. N.T., 3/7 at 57; 3/16 at 30. Some employees in these classifications were paid a bonus, rather than overtime wages, for extra work above their required minimum amount of work. 117. Employees in these classifications were not paid overtime for hours worked in a week over forty. N.T., 3/7 at 37, 56. 118. Some employees in these classifications credibly testified that they sometimes punched themselves in and out on a time clock, N.T., 3/7 at 57; 3/8 at 36, 68, 106. Sometimes, other employees or supervisors punched employees in and out. N.T., 3/7 at 57, 58; 3/8 at 110-111, 114. 119. Defendants presented the testimony of Michael Thompson, a dispatcher at the Hoch facility in Allentown. N.T., 3/21 at 118. Thompson testified that classification 303 employees generally worked approximately six to seven hours a day. Id. at 126. 120. This statement is contradicted by the defendants’ time records and the witness’s cross-examination testimony. Thompson testified that it was generally not true that classification 303 employees averaged lesser hours than classification 305 drivers. Id. at 125. However, defendants’ payroll records show that on average, classification 303 employees worked less hours than the drivers. For example, for the week of July 17, 1987, classification 305 employees Acevedo, Bundy, Butler, Harding, Hughes and Hunger are shown on the defendants’ payroll records as having exceeded 60 hours of work. GX 26. Two pickers, Spengler and Guiterrez, recorded more than 60 hours, but eight other pickers recorded less than 60 hours. GX 26. 121. This discrepancy, and my observation of the witness during trial, leads me to find that Thompson was not a credible witness. 122. The Secretary’s compliance officer used the hours as reflected in the defendants’ payroll records as the best available record of hours worked for employees in these classifications. N.T., 3/16 at 30-31, 36-37. While other evidence adduced during trial causes me to be skeptical of the accuracy of the hours recorded on defendants’ payroll records as being accurate representations of hours actually worked, and defendants’ policy of punching employees in these classifications in and out compounds my concerns, the defendants have provided no other records of hours worked by classification 303 and 305 employees. 123. Accordingly, I find that the hours reflected in the defendants’ payroll records for classification 303 and 305 employees provide a reasonable record of the hours these employees actually worked. For weeks in which employees in these classifications worked in excess of 40 hours, such employees are due additional overtime for hours in excess of 40. C. Classification 306 124. Classification 306 employees work in the “Northern” division. CX 1, 2. There are approximately 58 employees in this class. GX 12, 26, 26A. 125. Classification 306 employees were paid on a day rate basis. N.T., 2/22 at 15, 31, 46; 3/16 at 33. These employees were not paid a premium wage for hours worked in a week in excess of 40. Id. 126. The employees who testified during trial credibly testified that all Northern division employees worked approximately the same hours. N.T., 2/22 at 15, 46. 127. The employees also credibly testified that they worked 9 to 11 hour days on “short days” during the week and approximately 8 hours on Saturdays. N.T., 2/22 at 16, 23, 28, 37, 45. On “long days,” the employees worked up to 16 hours. N.T. 23, 30. Employees in this classification consistently worked hours well in excess of 40. N.T., 2/22 at 14, 28, 45. 128. The employees who testified stated that the defendants did not accurately record their hours worked. N.T., 2/22 at 16, 20, 24, 30-31. 129. Defendants’ attempted to rebut this testimony by showing that employees in this classification were responsible for keeping their own time records through the testimony of the former manager of the Northern division, Anthony Spinozza, and documents which were purportedly time cards completed by the 306 employees. N.T., 3/30 at 2; DX 5. Specifically, Spinoz-za testified that employees were responsible for keeping their time cards and completing the time cards themselves. N.T., 3/30 at 5. 130. First, on cross-examination, Spi-nozza testified that he could not explain several discrepancies between DX 5 and the defendants’ payroll records. Id. at 12. 131. Second, the total hours worked on the time cards frequently are not correctly reflected in the defendants’ payroll records, GX 23. E.g., Paul Baker: 8/1/87 time card — 51.5 hours, 8/7/87 payroll — 48 hours; Richard Frampton Sr.: 8/8/87 time card — 61.25 hours, 8/14/87 payroll — 49.25 hours; Paul Cosgrove: 12/5/87 time card • — 50.5 hours, 12/11/87 payroll — 48.5 hours; David Karosus: 4/16/88 time card — 62 hours, 4/22/89 payroll — 52 hours. 132. Third, many cards do not show total hours worked in a week; only the notation “shuttle.” E.g., DX 5 at Karl Bowder Sr., 1/10/88, 1/17/88. Spinozza testified that the “shuttle” notation rendered the employee’s actual hours worked irrelevant. N.T., 3/30 at 11. 133. Fourth, and most importantly, many of the cards could not have been completed by the employee himself, unless he changed the spelling of his own name from week to week. DX 5 at David Karo-sus (4/16 card name spelled “D. Karous-es”, next card spelled “Dave Karosus”). Other cards contain precisely the same handwriting for different employees. Compare DX 5 Paul Baker, 7/25/87 with Karl Bowder, Jr., 1/10/88. Other cards show the same handwriting for several employees in one week. E.g., DX 5, 2/6/88 cards for Krawcyk, Knick, Baker, Cos-grove, Bowder, Jr., Mill. 134. Based on these unexplained discrepancies, I find that these cards are either, at worst, blatant forgeries, visible to an untrained eye, or, at best, wholly unreliable indicators of the hours classification 306 employees actually worked. 135. Defendants offered no testimony from any witness with personal knowledge of hours worked by classification 306 employees, and no explanation for these discrepancies. Rather, defendants attempted to attack the Secretary’s compliance officer’s basis for his estimate. N.T., 3/16 at 58-60. When I suggested that proper impeachment of the officer’s testimony could be done with the use of the actual time cards, they eventually produced DX 5. Id. at 60. 136. Defendants also did not submit time cards for employees in any other employee classification. 137. Based on the unreliability of the time cards and my observation of the witness during trial, I find that Spinozza’s testimony concerning Northern Division employees was not credible. 138. I credit the testimony of the Secretary’s witnesses concerning hours worked in a week of an average of twelve to thirteen hours per day during the week and six to eight hours per Saturday. 139. Accordingly, I find that the Secretary’s compliance officer’s estimate of an average 70 hour work week for 306 employees is reasonable and based on an approximation consistent with the credible evidenced adduced during trial. VI. Lackawanna Transport Drivers 140. Lackawanna Transport tractor-trailer drivers are classification 103 and 203 employees. There are approximately 63 employees in these classifications. GX 22, 27. 141. Defendants generally kept no records of hours worked for employees in these classifications. 142. It is undisputed that these employees drove from facilities in Lower Merion, Abington, Pennsylvania and the Kraft Food plant in South Philadelphia to the Keystone landfill at Dunmore, Pennsylvania, the “G.R.O.W.S./Waste Management” landfill at Langhorn, Pennsylvania, or the “Buekhorn Transfer Facility” during the 1986 to 1988 period. The dispute is the length of time for a trip between these various facilities. 143. Employees in these classifications were paid on a per trip basis, and the rate per trip varied among the different destinations. Defendants’ payroll records show that employees were paid $40-$48 per trip to Keystone from Lower Merion or Abing-ton; $27 to $36 from Lower Merion or Abington to Morrisville; $50 to $60 from South Philadelphia to Keystone. 144. During the time waste was being dumped at Keystone, as with other tractor-trailer drivers in defendants employ, employees in these classifications reported to the landfill between 4:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. N.T., 2/22 at 80, 3/20 at 3, 21, 33, 44, 79; 3/23 at 12, 42. Employees were instructed to be at the landfill early to be at the front of the line when the landfill opened at various times between 5:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. N.T., 2/22 at 87; Finding 52. 145. Drivers spent an average of approximately one hour in the morning and approximately one-half hour during the second run of the day waiting to dump their loads. N.T., 3/20 at 3, 22, 44, 80; 3/23 at 12-13, 44. Thus, I find that the time spent waiting at the landfill averaged three-quarters of an hour for each load. 146. The evidence establishes that a one-way drive from Dunmore to Abington took an average of two to two and one-half hours. N.T., 3/20 at 4, 22, 44, 80; 3/21 at 59, 87; 3/23 at 12, 46. Round-trip driving time, therefore, averaged approximately five hours. 147. The evidence establishes that a round-trip drive from Dunmore to Lower Merion took an average of five and one-half hours. N.T., 2/22 at 87, 100, 113, 177. 148. Employees in these classifications also worked at the yards in Lower Merion or Abington from one-half to three hours while unhooking the empty trailers, hooking up filled trailers, inspecting and servicing their rigs, and on some occasions waiting for trailers to be filled. N.T., 2/22 at 82, 114; 3/20 at 4, 23, 44-45, 80; 3/23 at 46. 149. The two defense employee witnesses testified that it took fifteen minutes to one hour at the yards to complete a “turnaround.” N.T., 3/21 at 60-61, 88. In Finding 60, supra, I found that the testimony of Smith was simply not credible. To the extent Reese’s testimony is credible, it is also substantially consistent with that of the Secretary’s witnesses. 150. Including all the time spent working during the day, these employees credibly testified that they averaged eleven to seventeen hours per day. N.T., 2/22 at 85, 113; 3/20 at 6, 32, 85; 3/21 at 71-72; 3/23 at 12-17, 19-20. 151. Accordingly, I find that the average time per trip spent working is six and one-half hours per trip from Abington and seven hours per trip from Lower Merion. This approximation is based on the average driving time for each facility, 45 minutes at the landfill per trip, and 45 minutes at the yard. It is reasonable and consistent with the credible testimony of the Secretary’s and defense witnesses. 152. During 1987 and 1988, employees principally drove from Lower Merion and Abington to a landfill at or near Morris-ville, Pennsylvania called the G.R.O.W.S./Management landfill. N.T., 2/22 at 97; 3/20 at 82; 3/23 at 17, 47. 153. The roundtrip driving time from Abington to G.R.O.W.S. was between two and three hours. N.T. 3/20 at 5, 26, 83; 3/23 at 21, 47. 154. The round trip driving time from Lower Merion to G.R.O.W.S. was between two and one-half to three hours. N.T., 3/20 at 55; 3/23 at 22. 155. The wait to dump at this landfill was between one-half hour to four hours depending on the weather. N.T., 3/20 at 5, 26-27, 68, 83; 3/23 at 21, 23, 47. 156. The Secretary’s compliance officer estimated an average of three and one-half hours of work per trip from Abington to the landfill and four hours of work per trip from Lower Merion to the landfill. He then calculated hours worked per week based on the rate of pay for a load to and from these facilities. N.T., 3/30 at 29-30. 157. Accordingly, I find the Secretary’s compliance officer’s estimate and method reasonable and consistent with the credible evidence adduced at trial. The estimate of time spent per load waiting at the landfill and changing trailers at the yards is reasonable and conservative. 158. Defendants offered no evidence which seriously contradicts the estimates of time from Lower Merion and Abington to G.R.O.W.S. 159. Some employees also made trips from the Kraft Food plant in South Philadelphia to Dunmore. N.T., 3/20 at 57; 3/23 at 31. 160. The round trip driving time from South Philadelphia to the landfill was between six and eight hours. N.T., 3/20 at 57; 3/23 at 31. 161. These employees waited one-half hour at the plant for the truck to be loaded, and three quarters to one hour at the landfill for the load to be inspected before they were allowed to dump. Id. 162. The Secretary’s compliance officer estimated eight and one-half hours of work per trip. He then used the rate of pay per load to estimate the hours worked per week for these employees. 163. Accordingly, I find the Secretary’s compliance officer’s methods of computing hours worked and overtime wages due are reasonable and based on the credible evidence adduced at trial. The estimate of time spent per load waiting at the landfill and waiting for the trailer to be loaded is reasonable and conservative. 164. Defendants offered no evidence to controvert this estimate. 165. Some employees also travelled from Abington to a facility referred to as “Buckhorn.” N.T., 3/21 at 74; 3/ 23 at 25. The precise location of this facility is not evident from the evidence adduced at trial. 166. This facility was a transfer station at which the waste was baled. N.T., 3/23 at 25. 167. The evidence adduced at trial from the Secretary’s witnesses shows that the round trip driving time from Abington to this facility was between five and six hours. N.T., 3/21 at 74; 3/23 at 25. The wait at this facility was between one-half and four hours. N.T., 3/21 at 74; 3/23 at 25. 168. The Secretary’s compliance officer estimated working time per round trip to Buckhorn averaged six and one-half hours, and computed working time based on the wage paid for this trip. GX 27 and Appendix G (submitted post trial). 169. Defendants offered no evidence concerning the time it took to get to this facility, where the facility was located, or where the waste was transported to once it was baled at this facility. 170. Accordingly, I find the Secretary’s compliance officer’s methods of computing hours worked and overtime wages due are reasonable and consistent with the credible evidence adduced at trial. The estimate of one hour of time working at the yard and waiting at the facility to dump is reasonable and conservative. 171. Three individuals, Emory Barone, Earl Farmer, and Norman Howard, are shown on Lackawanna Transport’s records as yard jockeys. GX 27; N.T., 3/23 at 27, 29. 172. The defendants’ records further reflect that individuals who worked as yard jockeys were paid a salary, and hours worked were not recorded. GX 27. The salaries do not reflect the payment of an overtime premium for hours worked in excess of 40 in a week. 173. Actual hours worked records were available for Emory Barone for the period prior to June 3, 1986. These records consistently reveal that Barone worked more than forty hours in a week on average. GX 22, 27; N.T., 3/30 at 33-34. 174. This evidence is corroborated by the testimony of tractor-trailer drivers who consistently testified that yard jockeys worked during the period that the yards were open. N.T., 3/21 at 75-77; 3/23 at 16, 27-28. The yard jockeys’ hours included time spent waiting for trucks to return for third loads during the week and approximately a minimum of three hours of work on Saturdays when the yards were open. 175. The Secretary’s compliance officer estimated that these employees were entitled to compensation for a 45 hour work week, based on this evidence and the defendants’ records. N.T., 3/30 at 32. 176. Defendants offered no evidence to controvert this estimate. 177. Accordingly, I find that the Secretary’s compliance officer’s methods and estimate of overtime wages due are reasonable and consistent with the evidence adduced at trial. VII. Interstate Commerce Exemption 178. The evidence concerning the transport of waste from the various defendant companies to landfills outside the state of Pennsylvania is less than clear. It is difficult to precisely determine the exact dates when the Hoch and Lackawanna divisions began transporting out-of-state, which employees were involved in the stream of transporting the waste out-of-state, and during what periods specific employees were involved in the interstate transport of waste. These difficulties are occasioned by defendants’ failure to provide records to support the testimony of their witnesses. 179. Defendants own and operate a landfill in Wetzel County, West Virginia. N.T., 3/27 at 8-9. Defendants also dump waste at several other landfills in Ohio and West Virginia. Id. 180. A receipt dated June 24, 1987 represents the first load of waste that was transported to West Virginia from the Souderton yard, where JPM waste was transferred. N.T., 3/27 at 18; DX 13. 181. Waste was transported to the Souderton yard by all classifications of employees of defendant JPM, except classification 203 tractor-trailer drivers. N.T., 3/8 at 19, 40, 48; 3/7 at 38. 182. Further, the log sheets for the West Virginia landfill show that beginning at least by October 1,1987, numerous loads of waste generated by JPM were deposited there daily. DX 16. 183. After June 24, 1987, the waste dumped at the Souderton yard was moved onto trucks for transport out-of-state within twenty-four (24) hours. The content of the waste was not processed. N.T., 3/27 at 27-28. 184. The Secretary’s compliance officer submitted revised backwage computations which exempt all JPM employees except classification 203 employees as Appendix F to its post-trial submissions. These computations delete overtime calculations for hours over 40 worked during a week by JPM employees except classification 203, for the period beginning June 24, 1987. 185. Accordingly, I find these revisions reasonable and consistent with the evidence concerning when JPM employees became regulated by the Secretary of Transportation. 186. The Secretary presented the testimony of a number of classification 203 employees who worked for JPM at periods before June 24, 1987. N.T., 2/22 at 141 (driver from May, 1986 to May, 1987), 153 (driver during June or July, 1986); 2/23 at 3 (driver from August, 1985 to March, 1986), 11 (driver during late, 1985 to early, 1986), 22-23 (driver from January, 1986 to August, 1986 and from January, 1987 to May, 1987). These employees did not transport waste out-of-state. N.T., 2/22 at 128, 133; 2/23 at 3, 11, 22-23. However, it is not disputed that defendants were not transporting waste out-of-state at the times these employees worked for JPM. 187. Thus, the Secretary’s direct evidence does not address where classification 203 employees drove after June 24, 1987. 188. However, in reviewing the revised wage transcription sheets, computed from the employers’ records, conclusions may be drawn about the transport of waste out-of-state by classification 203 employees. 189. There are a total of 28 employees included in classification 203. Appendix F. Of these 28 employees, 16 did not work for JPM during the period after June 24, 1987. 190. Accordingly, based on the evidence adduced concerning the destination of waste prior to June 24, 1987,1 find that the Secretary’s compliance officer’s transcription sheets show that none of these employees transported waste out-of-state. 191. Of the remaining twelve employees, 10 of the employees’ transcription sheets show that these employees were always compensated at rates less than $50.00 per trip. These employees are Robert West, John Ward, Joseph Tate, John Frank Preskop, Robert Mizwinski, Micheál Merk-itch, Michael Lloyd, Charles Brown, and Nicholas Antidormi. 192. It is undisputed that defendants paid drivers $150.00 per trip for driving to West Virginia. 193. The employers’ payroll records do not reflect that these 10 employees were ever paid a rate even roughly equivalent to the wage paid for trips out-of-state. Further, the rates paid these employees were generally $40.00 or $24.00 per trip, equal to the rates defendants paid for trips to landfills within Pennsylvania. 194. Therefore, I find that these 10 employees did not transport waste out-of-state. 195. The computation sheets for two classification 203 employees, Cliff Snyder and Frederick Moyer, reflect a number of trips at rates less than the $150 per trip interstate rate. 196. However, Snyder’s transcription sheet shows that for the week ending November 18, 1987, he was paid $450 for three trips, the $150.00 per trip rate. Moyer’s sheet shows that beginning in the week of December 2, 1987, he was compensated at the $150.00 per trip rate. 197. Given the evidence available, therefore, I find that Snyder and Moyer began driving interstate on November 18, 1987 and December 2, 1987 respectively. The wage transcription sheets do not reflect overtime wages due these employees after these dates. 198. Accordingly, I find that the computation sheets submitted by the Secretary as Appendix F correctly reflect that JPM classification 203 employees were not engaged in the interstate transportation of waste for periods when the sheets show overtime wages are due classification 203 employees. 199. Concerning Hoch Sanitation employees except Northern Division employees, the sparse evidence shows that at some point between late June, 1987 to December, 1988, waste from the Hoch division was transported to the JPM facility at Souderton. N.T., 3/21 at 101, 3/27 at 37. 200. The former supervisor of the Hoch Allentown facility from April to October, 1987 credibly testified that “most of the time,” while he was supervisor, waste was dumped at the Keystone Landfill. N.T., 3/7 at 60. 201. No records were introduced which show the destination of Hoch waste for the period, despite Pat Mascaro’s admission that such records were available. N.T., 3/27 at 45. 202. Accordingly, given the failure of defendants to provide such records, based on the evidence available, I find that Hoch Sanitation waste, other than Northern Division waste, was not transported out-of-state before September 30, 1987. 203. This finding is consistent with the credible testimony of the former supervisor, and with the credible testimony of Pat Mascaro. Mascaro testified that beginning in June, 1987, thirty-five percent of the defendants’ waste was transported to destinations out-of-state. N.T., 3/27 at 11. During the period from August to October, 1987, use of the West Virginia landfill increased substantially. N.T., 3/27 at 19-20. 204. Concerning the Northern Division, Mascaro testified that waste from this division continued to be dumped at the Keystone landfill until it closed at the end of November, 1987. N.T. 3/27 at 10. 205. Mascaro’s testimony on this point conflicts with that of the former operations manager of the Northern Division who testified that waste from that division was sent to Souderton during the time he was manager, N.T., 3/30 at 13. However, as I have already found other credibility problems with the testimony of the former manager, I credit the testimony of Mascaro on this point. 206. Accordingly, I find that Northern Division waste was not transported in interstate commerce before November 30, 1987. 207. Thus, Mascaro’s testimony concerning the gradual increase of the transportation of defendants’ waste in interstate commerce is consistent with these findings, summarized as follows: 207A. JPM waste began to be transported in interstate commerce, with the exception of that transported by classification 203 drivers, in June, 1987. Therefore, JPM employees, other than classification 203 employees, were a part of a continuous stream of interstate commerce beginning June 24, 1987. 207B. Hoch waste began to be transported in interstate commerce, with the exception of Northern Division waste, in October, 1987. Therefore, Hoch Sanitation employees, other than Northern Division employees, were a part of a continuous stream of interstate commerce beginning on or about September 30, 1987. 207C. Northern Division waste began being transported in interstate commerce in November, 1987. Therefore, Northern Division employees were a part of a continuous stream of interstate commerce beginning on or about November 30, 1987. 208. Concerning Lackawanna Transport employees, the evidence is even more difficult to distill. 209. In December, 1988, defendants opened a baling facility at Omrod, Pennsylvania. It is undisputed that since that time, Lackawanna Transport employees have been engaged in a continuous stream of interstate commerce. 210. Before that time, the evidence shows that many Lackawanna drivers drove only to the G.R.O.W.S. landfill in Morrisville, Pennsylvania. N.T., 2/22 at 79; 3/20 at 38, 78; 3/23 at 32. 211. Pat Mascaro credibly testified that from the time the Keystone landfill closed in November, 1987 until December, 1988, Lackawanna Transport employees transported waste from Abington and Lower Merion “[p]rincipally to G.R.O.W.S.” in Pennsylvania. N.T., 3/23 at 123; 3/27 at 2. 212. However, some Lackawanna employees occasionally did transport waste to West Virginia and other out-of-state locations. These employees were paid $150 per trip. N.T., 3/20 at 8, 29, 37-38; 3/23 at 51; DX 16 (West Virginia landfill log sheet for November 5, 1987 showing 2 loads transported by “Lacawana [sic]”). Further, the West Virginia landfill log sheets show numerous loads were delivered by Lackawan-na drivers. DX 16. 213. The defendants’ payroll records show that Lackawanna Transport employees began hauling to out-of-state landfills in December, 1987, and ceased these trips after April, 1988. GX 22, GX 27. 214. During 1988, some Lackawanna employees hauled waste to the Buckhorn facility where it was baled. Employees were paid $50.00 per trip to Buckhorn. N.T., 3/21 at 73; 3/23 at 12, 25, 47. 215. There is no direct evidence to suggest that the waste taken to the Buckhorn facility was transported in interstate commerce. The sole indirect evidence of the destination of the waste transported through the Buckhorn facility is the testimony of Pat Mascaro that nearly all waste transported by defendants after 1988 is transported out of Pennsylvania. 216. This evidence is not sufficient to find that the waste transported to Buck-horn before the end of 1988 was transported in interstate commerce. 217. Accordingly, I'find that the only Lackawanna employees who hauled waste to out-of-state landfills are reflected on the employers' payroll records during the period prior to December, 1988. The evidence does not establish that Lackawanna Transport employees were part of a pool of employees who participated in the transportation of goods in a stream of interstate commerce. This conclusion is consistent with Mascaro’s testimony that Lackawanna Transport employees “principally” transported waste within Pennsylvania during this period. 218. For employees who are shown to have transported waste out-of-state prior to December, 1988, the Secretary’s compliance officer calculated backwages and excluded the four month period following the employee’s last trip out-of-state. N.T., 3/30 at 11. The exclusion of the four month period is reasonable. 219. There is no direct evidence that yard laborers at these facilities are engaged in activities related to the safety of interstate commerce. The direct evidence shows that yard laborers park trucks, push trash into compactors, and switch trailers. N.T., 3/21 at 4-6; 3/23 at 38. 220. However, it is logical to infer that these employees are involved in the packing of the trucks that go out-of-state. Simply put, somebody must load the trucks, and there is no other category of employee who could possibly be responsible for that task. 221. Accordingly, I find that the yard laborers were engaged in activities that affect the safety of interstate commerce during the periods described above. VIII. Evidence Related to the Liquidated Damages Claim 222. Defendant Hoch Sanitation was investigated on one prior occasion by the Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division. N.T., 3/13 at 55-59. That investigation concluded in January, 1986 and encompassed the period from August, 1985 to December, 1985. The investigation resulted in the payment of approximately $1,100.00 in minimum wage and overtime backwages paid to an undetermined number of employees. 223. The violations of minimum wage and overtime wage laws resulted from defendants payment of bonus money when overtime wages should have been paid. 224. This precise violation is the basis for a part of the violations described above. Findings 110, 111, 116. 225. The Secretary’s compliance officer who handled the investigation discussed the violations with the manager of the facility, who was defendants’ agent. He explained the proper methods for computing overtime wages, which defendants’ agent apparently understood. N.T., 3/13 at 56-57. 226. Defendants’ were provided with a reference guide of the Fair Labor Standards Act and Regulation 778 which details proper methods for computing overtime wages. Id. 227. Immediately before the investigation which lead to the instant action, Department of Labor Compliance Officer Joseph Dietrick spoke with Hoch Sanitation office manager Virginia Travitsky at her request. N.T., 3/16 at 21. 228. Dietrick informed Travitsky of the problems related to the day rate method of pay, and the defendants’ bonus system for additional runs. Id. at 22. Travitsky told Dietrick she understood his explanation. Id. at 23. 229. The very next day, Dietrick was contacted by the contract manager for the company, Richard Sheppard. Sheppard’s questions of Dietrick made it clear to Diet-rick