SSM Health Care, a medical corporation comprised of seven health care centers and hospitals in the St. Louis area, has paid more than $1.7 million in back wages following a Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) investigation by the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division.

Wage and Hour Division investigators found that the medical corporation violated the FLSA's overtime provisions by failing to pay its nursing staff time and one-half their regular rates for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek. The employees were not paid when they were required to work during some meal periods. The company's timekeeping system automatically deducted time for meal periods whether the employees were fully relieved of their duties or not. The division found $1,738,133 in back wages due 4,007 employees.

"The welfare of our workforce depends on ensuring that workers receive all the wages they have earned, and the Labor Department is committed to that end," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis.
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