Hill Country Staffing, Co., which employs several hundred oilfield workers throughout the nation, has just been sued for unpaid wages. The lawsuit alleges that the staffing company failed to compensate its hourly workers with the proper overtime pay as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act (“PMWA”). This collective action aims to recover overtime pay for workers with Equipment Operators job titles as well as others with similar hourly non-exempt roles that work or have worked for the staffing company throughout the United States.
Non-exempt workers for Hill Country Staffing typically work hours on end for weeks at a time in some of the harshest working conditions. Plaintiffs in this matter noted working 11 to 20-hour shifts, 7 days a week for several weeks at a time. Even though non-exempt workers were expected to work extraordinary hours, Hill Country Staffing failed to pay them the appropriate overtime rate under the FLSA and PMWA when working over 40 hours per week. Instead, the staffing company allegedly chose to pay its non-exempt workers their regular rate of pay or “straight time” for all their hours worked above 40 per week. This lawsuit is brought on behalf of all current and former hourly non-exempt employees with similar job structures who choose to participate in resolve potential wage and hour violations.
Even though pay structures may be well-established in your industry, it doesn’t necessarily mean they are legal. Unfortunately, many labor intensive industries, such as the oil and gas industry, fail to properly compensate their workers correctly for all their wages in order to cut costs. If you’ve worked for Hill Country Staffing as an hourly non-exempt worker, and would like to see if you are eligible to participate in this lawsuit, do not hesitate to call our firm, Fitapelli & Schaffer, at (212) 300-0375. If you work in the industry and have concerns about your pay, you can also reach out to us via phone or through our website here to see if you may have a claim for owed wages.
You can also view the filed complaint here.