PITTSBURGH – The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $65,640 in back wages and liquidated damages for three workers at two Pittsburgh-area gas station and convenience stores after its investigation found the employer had a history of shortchanging workers and violating federal overtime laws.

The department’s Wage and Hour Division found that Om Shiva Enterprise Inc. – a Monaca-based operator of Sunoco gas stations and owner Durlabhju Ukani – did not pay employees the overtime they were legally due when they worked between 57 and 112 hours in a week. Om Shiva failed to pay one-and-one-half times employees’ required rates of pay for hours over 40 in a workweek. The employer also failed to maintain records of employees’ work hours. The investigations covered locations in Freedom and Cranberry Township.

The latest action follows a Nov. 5, 2021, consent judgment entered in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania that required Om Shiva Enterprise Inc. and its owners to pay $281,029 in back wages and liquidated damages to two workers at a gas station and convenience store in Monaca. The judgment also orders them to comply with the Fair Labor Standards Act in the future.

During this prior investigation in 2021 and others in 2011, 2016 and 2020 at other locations they operate, Om Shiva Enterprise Inc. and Ukani were informed of the FLSA’s requirements, including the responsibility to pay overtime and maintain records of employees’ work hours.

“Despite...

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