Valero Energy Corp. is up against a federal class-action lawsuit that accuses the company of underpaying and overworking its convenience-store employees, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The lawsuit was filed Monday by two former Valero store managers and one current manager, all from Santa Cruz, Calif. The former female employees are suing, alleging that they were not paid for overtime work and on-call time, were not allowed meal breaks and could not take their two 10-minute breaks, which are guaranteed by law.
Additionally, if any of the employees they managed worked overtime, the company would deduct wages from the women’s paychecks, according to an attorney working on the case.
“Based on what was in the press release issued by the plaintiffs’ law firm, Valero generally denies the allegations in the lawsuit. Valero pays its employees appropriately and in accordance with state and federal laws,” said Bill Day, Valero spokesperson in a statement released Monday evening.
The lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, could result in a fine of up to $100 million for Valero, Steven Wittels, attorney for the plaintiffs, of Sanford Wittels & Heisler LLP told the Wall Street Journal.
The largest independent refiner of oil in the U.S., Valero operates 1,000 gas stations and corner stores. In addition, there are about 5,800 Valero-branded stores owned and operated by wholesalers.
