Washington Mutual, the biggest U.S. savings and loan, was sued by former loan officers who claim the bank violated overtime and minimum wage laws.

Three former loan officers in California, Illinois and New York claim they worked more than 40 hours per week without overtime pay, according to a lawsuit filed today in Brooklyn federal court. The employees, paid on commission, said they received no pay at all if loans they worked on weren’t approved.

"Defendant has operated under a scheme to deprive these employees of minimum wage and overtime compensation by failing to properly compensate them," lawyers for the employees said in the complaint.

The suit claims Washington Mutual violated California wage laws, as well as federal labor law and New York and Illinois state wage laws. Hundreds of suits have been filed in California against banks, insurers and other companies seeking overtime and other pay for salaried and commissioned workers.

The former Washington Mutual employees are seeking to proceed on behalf of all the bank’s loan officers who worked under similar conditions. The suit seeks back pay and damages.

"We believe our compensation practices are fair and ethical, and we will vigorously defend our company against the allegations made," Alan Gulick, a spokesman for Seattle-based Washington Mutual, said in an e-mailed statement.

The lawsuit is another in a series of overtime suits against financial companies. Bank of America Corp. paid $9 million in September to settle an overtime suit brought by employees who sold home mortgages and personal loans on commission. UBS AG, Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch & Co. have all reached multimillion-dollar settlements of overtime suits in the past year. All four settled without admitting wrongdoing.

Managers and administrative workers are generally exempt from overtime under state and federal labor laws. According to federal labor regulations, "an employee whose primary duty is selling financial products does not qualify for the administrative exemption."

---