A Rhode Island nursing home that was designated a COVID-19 specialty facility will pay more than $288,000 in back wages to employees who were shorted overtime pay during the pandemic. 

The agreement between Oak Hill Center in Pawtucket, RI, and the US Department of Labor to pay the back wages and damages was announced Tuesday. More than 400 employees are owed amounts ranging from $22 to $44,998, according to a report from Yahoo News. The agreement, in which Oak Hill does not admit or deny any wrongdoing, must still be approved by a federal judge. It notes that Oak Hill has been in compliance with federal wage laws since November 2022. 

“If defendants’ representation about their compliance with the FLSA is determined to be false, and defendants are found to be in violation of the FLSA, additional civil money penalties may be owed, in addition to back wages, liquidated damages, and other damages as appropriate,” the agreement states.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Care Compare notes that Oak Hill is part of Centers Health Care. A representative of the group signed the agreement on behalf of the defendants, according to a published report. But the Yahoo article also stated that Centers Health Care’s director of corporate communications said it no longer owns the 129-bed facility, which has a 1-star rating on Care Compare. 

In April 2020, the Rhode Island Department of Health designated Oak Hill as a COVID-19 specialty facility that would accept COVID patients who were ready to be discharged from a hospital but who required continuing care. 

The lawsuit from the Department of Labor alleged that Oak Hill failed to provide the correct overtime compensation to employees from March 2020 to March 2022. It also said the facility failed to maintain accurate records of employees’ working hours. The employees will receive the amount of back wages they are owed — a total of $144,258 — plus the equivalent amount in damages. The payments must be made within 30 days of the agreement being approved by a judge.

Oak Hill Center’s administrator did not respond to messages left Thursday by McKnight’s Long-Term Care News.