I blog a lot about working time cases because these are the issues can sneak up on an employer, even the most well intentioned and good faith employer. Travel time is one of these murky, arcane kind of activities that go unnoticed by companies until, often, a lawsuit is filed. Another example emerges. A group
Donning and Duffing Cases Keep Happening: The Danger of Off-The-Clock Activities
Working time cases come in all sizes and shapes. Many of these off-the-clock cases are so-called donning-and-duffing cases involving clothes changing for work and whether it is compensable. The U.S. Department of Labor has weighed in again on this issue. It has filed a lawsuit against a battery company for its alleged failure to pay
A Waiting Time/Bag Inspection Case Where The De Minimis Defense Actually Worked!
I have blogged several times recently on the rash of “check bag” cases that have percolated through the courts. Another example. A class of workers employed by Converse Inc. have now asked the Ninth Circuit to revive a class action resting on the theory that the time waiting to go through mandatory security inspections was
Eddie Bauer Security Check Waiting Time Case Gets Certification: What Is “Working Time”?
What is working time? There are many variations on this theme, some far grayer than others. When does waiting time become working time? Is the employee engaged to be waiting or waiting to be engaged? If the former, then it is working time. A class action involving more than 1,100 workers is now testing these
Admissions Director Exemption Issue May Impact Whether She Is Entitled To Pay For On-Call Hours
I have blogged about and have long been concerned about working time issues and what constitutes compensable work hours. One of the thorniest of these issues is on-call time and when, if at all, on-call hours become working time. A recent case throws light on this issue, as a Court has held that an
Ninth Circuit Finds Beauty School Students Were Not Employees
There have been a great many intern cases recently, cases testing whether interns crossed the line into being statutory employees and therefore covered by the FLSA. I have blogged about these kinds of cases and have specifically blogged about beauty school cases. The Ninth Circuit has just affirmed a lower federal court’s dismissal of
Use of Fluctuating Work Week Method To Pay Overtime Must Have A Fixed Salary As The Foundation
A class of equipment operators and trainees has asked a federal court to approve a $1.35 million settlement of their FLSA class action lawsuit alleging the Company did not fairly pay them their wages and used a gimmick to avoid doing so. The case is entitled Elliott v. Schlumberger Technology Corp. et al., and
Third Circuit Rest Break Case Has Different Slant
It is well-established that short rest breaks, so-called coffee breaks, are compensable under the Fair Labor Standards Act. In a variation on this age-old theme, in a unique set of circumstances, the Third Circuit has affirmed that employers must pay for breaks of up to twenty (20) minutes. In this case, the Company did not
Beauty School Students Are “Dropouts” From the FLSA According to Seventh Circuit
In the movie “Grease,” there is a song entitled “Beauty School Dropout,” sung by Frankie Avalon. Well, in a legal version of that number, the Seventh Circuit has affirmed that beauty school students have, sort of, dropped out of the FLSA as they are not considered employees. The case is entitled Hollins v. Regency Corp.
Airline Avoids Liability for Training Time Activity – Court Holds It Was Not “Work”
The issue of whether to pay for training time is a vexing one. In a recent case, a major airline avoided liability (for the most part) in a FLSA collective action alleging that it did not pay workers for time spent in a customer service-training program. The Court held that the trainees were not employees