HOUSTON, April 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/
-- PATTERSON-UTI ENERGY, INC. (NASDAQ: PTEN) today
announced that its subsidiary, Patterson-UTI Drilling Company LLC
(the "Company"), has reached an agreement with the U.S. Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission to resolve previously disclosed
allegations that originated from claims from field-based employees
a number of years ago. Rather than pursuing costly litigation
to dispute past claims, the Company's leadership team chose to work
with the Commission to institute additional human resources best
practices and enter into a no-fault $12.26
million settlement. The settlement terms were approved by a
federal judge on April 17, 2015. The
Company encourages those who are eligible to submit claims to
participate in the settlement when they receive notice from the
settlement administrator in approximately 60 days.
Andy Hendricks, the Company's
Chief Executive Officer since 2012, stated, "We take this matter
very seriously and are pleased to have reached a resolution.
We have built a culture of respect, diversity and equal
opportunity in our company and have zero tolerance for anything
less."
The Company has instituted strong policies, training programs
and recruiting initiatives to improve workforce diversity and
inclusion and reinforce its commitment to equal opportunity and
respectful treatment for all employees. "We are committed to
providing a safe, welcoming and respectful work environment that is
consistent with our core values," Hendricks concluded.
About Patterson-UTI Drilling
Patterson-UTI Drilling Company LLC and its subsidiaries operate
land-based drilling rigs in oil and natural gas producing regions
of the continental United States
and western Canada.
Location information about the Company's drilling rigs and their
individual inventories is available through the Company's website
at www.patenergy.com.
Statements made in this press release which state the
Company's or management's intentions, beliefs, expectations or
predictions for the future are forward-looking statements. It is
important to note that actual results could differ materially from
those discussed in such forward-looking statements. Important
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially
include, but are not limited to, volatility in customer spending
and in oil and natural gas prices, which could adversely affect
demand for our services and their associated effect on rates,
utilization, margins and planned capital expenditures; global
economic conditions; excess availability of land drilling rigs and
pressure pumping equipment, including as a result of reactivation
or construction; equipment specialization and new technologies;
adverse industry conditions; adverse credit and equity market
conditions; difficulty in building and deploying new equipment;
difficulty in integrating acquisitions; shortages, delays in
delivery and interruptions of supply of equipment, supplies
and materials; weather; loss of, or reduction in business with, key
customers; liabilities from operations; ability to effectively
identify and enter new markets; governmental regulation; ability to
realize backlog; and ability to retain management and field
personnel. Additional information concerning factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those in the
forward-looking statements is contained from time to time in the
Company's SEC filings, which may be obtained by contacting the
Company or the SEC. These filings are also available through the
Company's web site at http://www.patenergy.com or
through the SEC's Electronic Data Gathering and Analysis Retrieval
System (EDGAR) at http://www.sec.gov. We undertake no
obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking
statement
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SOURCE PATTERSON-UTI ENERGY, INC.