Some state workers to get millions in back pay after being cheated out of overtime

BALTIMORE - Thousands of state employees will be getting checks for money Maryland failed to pay them in one of the nation's largest cases of wage theft. 

The governor authorized more than $9 million for correctional employees in an expanded settlement over claims they were not properly paid for the hours they worked.

The settlement impacts 3,874 current and former correctional officers.

Maryland workers say they're owed millions in unpaid overtime and benefits as WJZ investigates wage theft

Investigator Mike Hellgren has the follow-up on a story WJZ has been covering extensively as part of our special series "Owed" in conjunction with the CBS News Innovation Lab.     

"We are conclusively bringing this matter to a close with a payment to 5,424 current and former employees," Maryland Gov. Wes Moore announced at a meeting of the state spending board on Wednesday.

The governor apologized in July to correctional officers and other correctional employees who were not paid for the hours they worked when announcing an initial $13 million settlement. 

"This has to be the largest case of wage theft by any state government maybe in the nation," Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman said during the board meeting.

The employees alleged for years they were paid for scheduled time only even if they worked more than those hours. They said overtime was rounded off so they never got the extra minutes it took to get to and from their posts. 

WJZ spoke to several victims as part of our investigation in 2023.

"I went to clock out, and I was already clocked out at my scheduled time which was 3 o'clock," said Brittany Cocart, an officer at the Metropolitan Transition Center. 

"Shortchanging everybody and not paying what we deserve, it is just unacceptable," Oluwadamilola Olaniyan, a sergeant at the Jessup Correctional Institution, told WJZ.

"We punched in and they called it a ledger and said there's a grace period of 15 minutes at the beginning in 15 minutes at the end," said Sergeant Dorian Johnson, from the Chesapeake Detention Facility.

After the state authorized $13 million to cover the claims, they later discovered thousands more employees were shortchanged and went back to look at the records.

"We had to do our due diligence and go through and make sure we did not miss anyone this time around," Carolyn Scruggs, the Secretary of Public Safety and Correctional Services, told the spending board. 

Scruggs said they looked at maintenance and dietary officers and people who were later promoted to administrative and other positions who were initially overlooked.

The union representing the employees blamed the administration of former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan for the wage theft.

"There's no one who has been held accountable yet. Really, it's a disservice to the taxpayers. It's a disservice to the employees that no one has been held accountable for this wage theft. Are they still working in state government? Are they still working in county government? They have no place working in government because they don't have the trust of the taxpayer and the people of Maryland," said Patrick Moran, the local president of the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees.

The settlement covers three years of back pay. Some workers were shortchanged by as much as $10,000.

"I am committed to working with AFSCME to ensure that every single employee who is impacted by the timekeeping system, will be made completely whole," Gov. Moore said.

The state is working with the union to review overtime policies to make sure this does not happen again.

For those who believe they may be victims of wage theft, the Maryland Department of Labor has 15 investigators and supervisors who work on wage claims. 

One-third of them are bilingual in English and Spanish. 

They handle complaints at no cost to you and say more than half are resolved in less than 60 days.

Employment Standards has a call center at 410-767-2357 and anyone can talk to an investigator, have their questions answered and receive instructions on how to properly file a complaint.