Cherry Hill Gas Station Owner Owes $1.5 Million In Back Pay: Feds

CHERRY HILL, NJ — The owner of six gas stations in South Jersey, including one in Cherry Hill, has paid $1,471,024 in back wages and damages to 24 gas station attendants to resolve violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the U.S. Department of Labor announced on Friday.

Manjit Guleria regularly required employees to work seven days a week, 10 or more hours each day, according to an investigation by the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. Guleria owns five Citgo stations and one Lukoil station, including the Citgo at 1510 NJ 38 in Cherry Hill.

The FLSA requires that covered, non-exempt employees be paid at lease the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hours for all hours worked, plus time and one-half their regular rates for hours worked beyond 40 per week.

Some states have established minimum wage rates that differ from the federal minimum wage. Where federal and state laws require different wage rates, the higher standard applies. Employees must also maintain accurate time and payroll records.

Despite asking his employees to work long hours, Guleria paid them flat salaries that typically resulted in hourly wages well below the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, according to the investigation. He also didn’t provide additional compensation for overtime.

He and his companies were found to have violated the FLSA by failing to pay employees the federal minimum wage or overtime. He also didn’t maintain required payroll records.

Under the terms of the settlement, 24 employees will receive $735,512 in unpaid minimum wage and overtime compensation and $735,512 in liquidated damages. In addition to the back wages and damages, Guleria paid a $8,976 penalty for the violations and has agreed to future FLSA compliance.

The gas stations are now required to use an electronic timekeeping system to track employees’ hours worked, change break policies to ensure that they pay employees when they are unable to take breaks, and provide employees with information about their rights under the FLSA.

In addition to the Cherry Hill Citgo, the gas stations are located at:
Citgo, 400 NJ 38 in Maple Shade;
Citgo, 102 Washington Crossing Road in Pennington;
Citgo, 2006 Mount Holly Road in Burlington;
Citgo, 469 Lenola Road in Moorestown; and
Lukoil, 2225 Admiral Wilson Blvd. in Merchantville.

“This settlement puts these wages into the hands of the employees who earned them,” Department of Labor Southern Jersey District Office Director Charlene Rachor said. “The Division encourages employers to avail themselves of the many resources we provide to help them to operate in compliance, and not to find themselves facing the liabilities that can come with breaking the law.”

New Jersey is one of two U.S. states that bar motorists from pumping their own gas. Gas stations in New Jersey employ full-service gas station attendants to operate gas pumps and provide related customer services.

“Businesses that violate the law gain a competitive advantage in the industry and undermine law-abiding employers,” Department of Labor Regional Solicitor Jeffrey S. Rogoff said. “We will vigorously enforce the law to ensure that companies that comply compete on a level playing field and to safeguard employees’ hard-earned wages.”

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

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