Pittsburgh Wage & Hour Violations Lawyers

Our Wage & Hour Violations Attorneys Want To Make Sure You Are Treated Appropriately in Your Workplace

If you worked in any capacity as an oilfield employee and were paid a per diem or truck allowance, or if you were an hourly rate worker, someone who was paid a day rate salary with bonuses, or considered an independent contractor, there is a good chance you have not been fully paid what you are rightfully due. Our Pittsburgh wage & hour violations lawyers compliance attorneys with Goodrich & Geist, P.C., may be able to help you collect the past due to the money you deserve.

As An Oilfield Employee, You May Not Be Receiving The Right Overtime Rate

In most cases, various groups of oilfield employees are not being paid the correct amount of overtime.

Many are being paid one and a half times their “hourly rate.” But, the overtime rate should be based instead on their “regular rate,” the money the employee is paid for ALL of his or her work.

The Facts

In many instances, some workers are being shorted $50 to $100 per week, which can average more than $5000 a year. Since many companies hire upwards of 400-500 people, oilfield workers are losing millions.

What You Can Recover

Under the FLSA, an employee can recover back wages from up to three years prior, attorney fees (generally between 30 and 40 percent of the overall settlement), and liquidated damages (doubling of actual back wages).

Day Rate/Salary/Salary + Bonus Employees

In most cases, this group of employees is not paid any overtime at all, but should. For oilfield work, unless the worker directly supervises a team of employees and has the ability to hire, fire, discipline, and essentially act as a manager, he or she should be paid by the hour.

As a result, almost all day rate, salary, and salary + bonus employees in the oilfield are misclassified as exempt from the overtime requirements and should be getting paid overtime.

Because they were not paid overtime, they are entitled to back wages up to three years for all hours worked over 40 in a single workweek.

Consider This Example

A day rate or salary equals $2000 a week. The employee works 84 hours a week, 44 of those hours considered overtime. Their hourly rate is (2000/84) $23.81. Because they were paid a salary, they are entitled to halftime for all hours worked in excess of 40 in a single workweek. Their damages without liquidated damages are ($11.90 x 44) $523.80 per week, or $1,047.61 with liquidated. If an employee worked 50 weeks per year over three years, their damages are ($523.80 x 150) $78,571.42, with liquidated damages (78,571.42 x 2) $157,142.86. That’s an awful lot of money to not have been paid.

Independent Contractors

Independent contractors can be a little more difficult to defend because of the fine print of a worker’s contract, which is why it is always important to be sure a worker agrees to the terms of his or her contract before the job is started.

The problem many independent contractors face is not being paid overtime, plain and simple. If a contractor makes $20 per hour and works 60 hours (20 hours of overtime), he or she is only paid $20 an hour for all 60 hours. Companies defend themselves by saying that the job was only 40 hours’ worth of work and because it took one particular individual 60 hours, that is not the fault of the company. In cases such as this, a company’s subjective argument against you means you are going to need a tough advocate on your side to call them out on their questionable practices.

Have You Worked For Any Of These Entities?

If you have worked for any of the following companies, you may very well likely not have been paid for all the work you have done:

• Iocca Corp.
• Superior Energy Services
• Antero Resources
• CDI Corporation
• NES Global
• Saxon Drilling
• BridgeLine Services, Inc.
• US Well Services
• TETRA Technologies, Inc.
• Swift Worldwide Resources
• Talisman Energy Inc.
• Progressive Global Energy
• Amega West Services
• Spencer Ogden
• EarthStream Global
• Rush Wireline Services
• Sidewinder Drilling
• Eclipse Resources
• Element Professionals, LLC
• J-W Wireline Company
• Premium Valve Services, LLC
• U.S. Well Services
• Kinder Morgan
• Express Energy Services

Contact A Pittsburgh Wage & Hour Violations Lawyer, Even If Your Employer Is Not On This List

There are other companies that may be guilty of shorting employees their money as well. So, even if you do not find your company on this list, but feel you have been shorted wages, contact our Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) compliance lawyers at Goodrich & Geist, P.C., today. Call 412-837-8426 today for a free consultation. It’s your money – you earned it and you deserve it – let us help you recover it.