Changes to the Industry
There have been recent initiatives from the wage and hour division of the Department of Labor to investigate the oil and gas industry and its compliance to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In the last few years, big industry names like Shell Oil Co. and Motiva Enterprises were investigated and held accountable for unpaid overtime and not compensating their workers correctly. In fact, since 2012 the Department of Labor has netted more than $37,000,000 in back wages for industry workers. As these investigations continued onto other companies in the industry, it became apparent that Citgo also faced similar issues with unpaid overtime and paying its refinery employees for all of their hours worked.
What are the allegations?
Almost 250 workers at a Citgo refinery in Texas were made to work 15-30 minutes extra every shift without any compensation. Workers were expected to prep and brief the next shift’s incoming workers after finishing their own 12 hour shift. Following this protocol, without being properly paid, was in direct violation of the FLSA. Citgo also allegedly failed to keep accurate time records and in turn did not pay its workers the appropriate overtime. The reasons noted why these refinery companies have not paid workers for pre shift or post shift work was simply because the companies didn’t think it was compensable and were lacking appropriate time keeping measures. The alleged nonpayment of time worked off the clock before and after shifts by Citgo is a long-standing industry practice. However, just because a practice has become industry standard doesn’t necessarily mean it is legal.
What kind of results can be expected?
The workers were awarded a total of $460,853 in back wages as part of a settlement with the United States Department of Labor. This amounts to about the equivalent of a two week paycheck for all of the affected workers. The settlement has been able to achieve more than just back wages for workers. As part of their settlement agreement, payroll supervisors and management will be required to understand and upkeep the importance of maintaining accurate time records for all personnel. These results will help implement the necessary industry changes and have workers be paid in compliance with the FLSA going forward. If you or someone you know works in the oil and gas industry and has questions about unpaid overtime or not being paid for all of their hours worked, do not hesitate to call our firm at 212-300-0375. During your free phone consultation you will be able to discuss and sort through the details of your concerns with one of our experienced labor attorneys.