UC to pay $1.3 million in back wages to nearly 14,000 workers

People walk past The Campanile at University of California, Berkeley campus March 29, 2016. The University of California system has agreed to pay $1.3 million in back wages and damages to nearly 14,000 employees it improperly paid over three years. less People walk past The Campanile at University of California, Berkeley campus March 29, 2016. The University of California system has agreed to pay $1.3 million in back wages and damages to nearly 14,000 ... more Photo: Leah Millis, The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Leah Millis, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 4 Caption Close UC to pay $1.3 million in back wages to nearly 14,000 workers 1 / 4 Back to Gallery

The University of California has agreed to pay $1.3 million in back wages and damages to nearly 14,000 employees it improperly paid over three years.

Under a settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor reached in May, the university will inform thousands of current and former employees that it underpaid those who worked overtime between January 2014 through December 2016.

UC will pay 13,721 employees $746,746 in back wages, and $616,011 in damages.

“Working people living check to check have been waiting nearly three years for UC to pay back these stolen overtime wages,” Kathryn Lybarger, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which represents hospital workers and other affected employees, said in a statement Friday. “We are grateful to the U.S. Department of Labor for ensuring that workers are made whole and that the university is held accountable.”

Dianne Klein, spokeswoman for UC, blamed the problem on a transition to a new payroll system and said the average amount of back wages owed to each employee was $55 over the three years.

“We noticed a calculation error in overtime pay for certain nonexempt employees,” Klein said. “Most of these employees are at the medical centers, where there is a lot of overtime worked because of the 24/7 nature of their operations.”

Klein said some employees were also overpaid and that UC is not asking them for a refund.

Nanette Asimov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: nasimov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @NanetteAsimov