Several home care providers are facing lawsuits from the Department of Labor (DOL) for allegedly failing to pay workers overtime or minimum hourly wages, according to Bloomberg BNA.

The lawsuits come just a few years after the in-home care industry was hit with a new regulation that ensured workers were protected by minimum and overtime wages.

The DOL filed lawsuits against at least five home care companies over the last three weeks, Bloomberg BNA reported. The lawsuits could possibly signal that providers have had a hard time complying with the new labor rules, which went into effect in 2015.

Several industry advocates, including the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC), lashed out against the new policy and have continued to make bids to overturn it. The case even reached the Supreme Court, though the high court declined to hear it, effectively putting the opposition to bed.

Legislation was also introduced last year that would have overturned the rule, which impacted roughly 3 million workers.

In response to the rule, several providers stated they were forced to raise prices for their services and even cap overtime hours, limiting the ability to work beyond 40 hours per week.

Now, with several lawsuits on the books, the issue of compliance is back in the spotlight.

According to Bloomberg, the companies being sued are Access Home Care, High Quality Care Nursing Agency, At Home Personal Care Services, Care at Home, and Healing Springs Med-Care.

Written by Amy Baxter