Gas Station Owners to Pay $63,398 In Wages to Six Employees After U.S. Department of Labor Finds Overtime Violations

CARROLLTON, GA – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD), Tushar and Varsha Patel – the owners of an enterprise operating nine gas stations and convenience stores in Carrollton and Bowden, Georgia – will pay $63,398 in wages to six employees for violating overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WHD investigated the enterprise – consisting of Marathon, Chevron, Shell, and BP gas stations – and found the employer paid overtime-eligible managers flat salaries, without regard to the number of hours that they worked. In doing so, the employer violated FLSA by failing to pay overtime in addition to the managers’ salaries when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. WHD also found the employer failed to maintain accurate records of the hours employees worked, also a federal violation.

“We encourage all employers to review their pay practices and contact the Wage and Hour Division for compliance assistance. By doing so, employers can ensure all employees are paid properly and avoid violations like those found in this case,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Eric Williams, in Atlanta.

WHD investigators found the violations at the following gas station locations:

WHD provides a wide variety of compliance assistance tools to help employers understand their responsibilities and employees understand their rights.

For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact the toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Employers who discover overtime or minimum wage violations may self-report and resolve those violations without litigation through the PAID program. Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd.