Class Actions

In any litigation, obviously, the plaintiff(s) bear an initial burden of proof that must be met before the burden shifts to the defendant to rebut.  In a Fair Labor Standards

Continue Reading Employees Can Keep FLSA Action Alive Without Specifying (Extra) Hours Worked: Am I Hearing Correctly?

I love working time cases. And we got a real winner lately.  The Third Circuit has recently ruled that clothes-changing time for oil rig workers was compensable.  In so doing

Continue Reading Third Circuit Clarifies The Meaning Of “Integral and Indispensable” Test In Preliminary/Postliminary Working Time Cases: Employers Beware!

I read an interesting post by Frank Shuster of Constangy, Brooks, Smith on the thorny and often misunderstood issue of the “regular rate” and what that concept entails for compliance

Continue Reading The “Regular Rate” For FLSA Purposes Can Be A Confusing Concept For Employers And An Expensive One!

Plaintiff lawyers are always asserting that every single alleged wage hour violation is “willful” so when they start negotiating a settlement (or trying to) they always start from that position

Continue Reading In An FLSA Case, Just Because The Plaintiff Says It’s Willful Does Not Make It So!

I am always interested in statute of limitations issues and cases because it is the first defense I look to when defending a FLSA case. On occasion, a suit will

Continue Reading Dismissal Of FLSA Class Action On Statute Of Limitations Grounds: An Interesting (And Important) Variation On The Theme

I have blogged on this issue a number of times, i.e., that federal courts are starting to tilt away from the typical and very, very easy way that plaintiffs now

Continue Reading Sixth Circuit Joins Fifth Circuit In Looking Towards A New, Fairer Way To Determine Whether Conditional Certification Is Appropriate: A New Day Dawning!

The certification process for FLSA collective actions has typically been a two-step process. The first step is to secure conditional certification, which is often handed out as easily as a

Continue Reading The Times They Are A Changin’–A District Court Rejects The “Usual” Two Tier FLSA Class Action Certification Model

I read an interesting blog post by Epstein Becker on the misunderstood issue of gap time and what that means for employers.  It notes that employees must be paid overtime

Continue Reading Gap Time Claims: What Are They And Can Employees Recover Back Wages For Them? Depends On Where The Employer Is Located

The FLSA is very strict concerning proper deductions from exempt employee salaries.  Improper deductions can undermine the exemption for the individual employee and possibly the entire class of exempt employees. 

Continue Reading Improper Deductions From Salary Can Jeopardize Exempt Status But Not If Taken From PTO Time: Great Decision!