(Oklahoma City, OK – Insurance News 360) – Following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, Oklahoma City’s Backyard Energy Services paid $253,399 in back wages and a civil penalty of $2,163 for violations of the Fair labor Standards Act, child labor laws, and record keeping issues.

The Department of Labor notes that Backyard Energy Services violated federal overtime law by misclassifying employees as independent contractors paid a flat daily rate when they worked more than 40 hours in a week. They also misclassified intrastate drivers as exempt from FLSA-overtime rules, paying flat salaries without overtime pay for work over 40 hours in a week. The DOL also says they didn’t keep records of how long employees worked.

In addition, Backyard Energy Services violated child labor laws when it employed a 17-year-old to operate a front-end loader and track hoe.

“Employers have a legal responsibility to pay their employees for all of the hours that they work, including overtime hours,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Michael Speer, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. “By enforcing the FLSA, the U.S. Department of Labor helps to level the playing field for all employers and ensure workers get the wages and employment protections they are due.”

Source: U.S. Department of Labor.