Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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HOUSTON -- BJ Chemical Services in Houston has paid $256,787 in back wages to 56 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation found the company had violated the overtime wage provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

“All employees are entitled to be paid the wages they have rightfully earned,” said Cynthia Watson, the Wage and Hour Division’s regional administrator in the Southwest. “The employer failed to pay overtime wages for employees who worked in excess of 40 hours in a week.”

An investigation by the Wage and Hour Division’s Houston District Office determined that BJ Chemical Services did not pay workers who maintained natural gas wells, installed chemical tanks and replaced well heads the appropriate overtime compensation for the hours worked over 40 in a workweek.

BJ Chemicals, specializing in chemical services to energy companies, has paid the back wages in full and agreed to continued compliance with the law.

The FLSA requires that covered employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked, plus time and one-half their regular rates of pay, including commissions, bonuses and incentive pay for hours worked more than 40 per week. Employers must also maintain accurate time and payroll records.

The Wage and Hour Division concluded 31,987 compliance actions and recovered more than $171 million in back wages for more than 246,000 employees in fiscal year 2006. Back wage collections last year represent a 30 percent increase over back wages collected in fiscal year 2001. The number of workers receiving back wages has increased by 14 percent since fiscal year 2001.

For information about federal overtime laws, call the U.S. Department of Labor’s toll-free help line at (866) 4US-WAGE (487-9243) or contact the Wage and Hour Division’s district office in Houston at (713) 339-5500. Information is also available on the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.

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