Waste management company to pay $150K in overtime back wages to 29 truck drivers after US Department of Labor investigation

Employer name: Patterson Services Inc.

Investigation site: 5800 Riverview Road
Mableton, Georgia 30126

Investigation findings: After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division’s Atlanta District Office, investigators found that Patterson Services violated the overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Specifically, the waste management company failed to pay overtime to 29 truck drivers. The employer paid the drivers a fixed rate per day, without regard to how many hours they worked. This practice resulted in overtime violations when the employees worked more than 40 hours in a week and the employer failed to pay the required time and one-half their regular rate of pay for overtime. The employer also failed to maintain required time and payroll records.

Resolution: Patterson Services will comply with the FLSA and pay 29 employees a total of $150,000 in back wages.  

Quote: “These Patterson Services’ truck drivers put in long hours to support their families and deserve to be paid properly,” said Eric Williams, district director for the Wage and Hour Division in Atlanta. “This case highlights the urgency for employers’ to review and comply with the labor laws that apply to their businesses. It is the employer’s responsibility to know and ensure employees receive the proper wages they have legally earned. The Wage and Hour Division will continue to enforce the law and to provide education to make sure that happens.”

Background: The FLSA provides an exemption from the overtime requirements for drivers, driver’s helpers, loaders and mechanics whose duties affect the safety of operation of motor vehicles in transportation on public highways in interstate commerce. That exemption did not apply to drivers in this case because they worked only within the state of Georgia. Patterson Services is a transportation company that provides dump-truck services to remove debris and waste from Georgia construction sites.

Information: For more information about federal wage laws administered by the Wage and Hour Division, call the agency's toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information also is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.