A new report shows that oil and gas wells continue to increase in Permian Basin and Eagle Ford Shale. According to a new quarterly report of oil and gas wells from a leading oilfield services company, there have been more than 4,000 new wells drilled in the Eagle Ford Shale, and more than 9,000 wells in the Permian Basin.

The number of wells drilled in the Permian Basin is by far the largest drilled over the past year in any of the oilfields in the U.S. In the second quarter of 2013 alone, more than 2,000 wells were drilled in the Permian Basin, more than double that of the next closest oilfield, the Eagle Ford Shale, which had just over 1,000 new wells drilled. The next-closest area was the Williston basin, with 609 oil wells drilled in the second quarter. The Barnett shale, located in and around Fort Worth, Texas, saw more than 400 oil and gas wells drilled in the second quarter of 2013.  For more information on oil and gas rig counts, click here and here.

This report reflects that the oil and gas boom continues in West and South Texas. This means that oilfield jobs remain plentiful, and oilfield workers will continue to be required by their employers to work long hours to drill these wells and maintain their production. While oil and gas companies can require their employees to work long hours, they must comply with federal overtime laws. The Fair Labor Standards Act requires employers to pay non-exempt employees one and a half times their regular rate for each hour worked in excess of forty in any given week. As I have previously written, employees in the oil and gas industry, particularly in areas that are booming such as the Eagle Ford Shale and the Permian Basin, are frequently shorted on overtime pay. For a summary of some of the more common problems experienced by oil and gas workers with respect to unpaid overtime, click here and here.

About the Author: Josh Borsellino represents workers across Texas that are owed unpaid overtime. If you have worked in the oilfields within the past three years and have questions about overtime pay, call Josh at 432.242.7118 or 817.908.9861, or fill out the contact form for a free evaluation of your potential claim.