The plaintiff sought more than $12,000 in unpaid wages on his FLSA claims, rejected the defendant employer’s Rule 68 offer of judgment of $3,500 on those claims, and then was awarded only $97.20 plus an equal amount of liquidated damages. Under these circumstances, the Eleventh Circuit held that the trial court properly awarded the defendant
Damages
Timber Harvesting Company Cannot Escape Overtime Liability, But Commute and Meal Break Time Should Not Have Been Included, Sixth Circuit Holds
Rejecting employer Timberline South’s argument, among others, that FLSA coverage did not apply because all of its timber harvesting occurred only within one state, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals nevertheless concluded that the commuting and meal break times should not have been included in the trial court’s calculation of overtime damages. Secretary of Labor…
Louisiana Federal Court Rules Half-Time Method Applies to Calculation of Any Alleged Unpaid Overtime and Bonuses Paid Offset Any Potential Liability
Courts addressing FLSA misclassification claims brought by employees classified as salaried exempt workers must determine damages. In a new decision from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Judge Jane Triche Milazzo ruled that successful Plaintiffs in one such misclassification case are only entitled to “half-time” damages. Further, the Court…
New Jersey Judge Reiterates That FLSA Does Not Protect “Gap Time”
The FLSA generally governs only the payment of minimum wages and overtime. It does not govern unpaid wage claims that do not result in a minimum wage or overtime violation—e.g., a claim brought by an employee that he worked 39 hours, but was only paid for 35 (sometimes referred to as a “gap time” claim).…
Maryland High Court Issues Opinion Regarding Right of Employees to Sue for Unpaid Wages
On March 22, 2014, Maryland’s highest court issued a new ruling regarding the scope of an employee’s right to file a lawsuit for unpaid wages under the Maryland Wage Payment and Collection Law (the “MWPCL”), Maryland’s principal wage payment statute. In Marshall v. Safeway, the Maryland Court of Appeals held that an employee may…
Georgia Judge Rejects Novel Assertion of Section 1981 Discrimination Claim Based on Failure to Pay Immigration Visa Rate to US Workers
"As the season for sweet onions ends, another onion farm labor dispute begins," observes Judge B. Avant Edenfield of the Southern District of Georgia in a new opinion, commenting upon the flurry of FLSA lawsuits filed in recent years in the American Southeast arising out of labor conditions at large farming concerns utilizing immigrant workers. Judge…
Federal Court Orders Trial Regarding Lady Gaga Assistant’s Wage Claims
In the still unresolved FLSA litigation concerning alleged unpaid overtime brought by a former personal assistant to entertainer Stefani Germanotta a/k/a Lady Gaga, Judge Paul Gardephe of the Southern District of New York has issued a lengthy ruling addressing some of the asserted claims and defenses. The Court concluded that plaintiff’s New York state law claims …
Fifth Circuit Reiterates Appropriate Calculation of Damages For Employees Misclassified as Exempt
In a decision issued on August 16, 2013, the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, building on its now-venerable ruling in Blackmon v. Brookshire Grocery Co., 835 F.2d 1135 (5th Cir. 1988), reversed a trial court ruling that refused to apply the “half time” measure of damages in an FLSA misclassification case. Ransom …
Eleventh Circuit Rules Liquidated Damages Discretionary, Not Automatic, in FLSA Retaliation Cases
Addressing a divided body of law, the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit — where numerous FLSA actions are brought particularly within the state of Florida — has ruled that a Florida district court did not err when it declined to award 100% FLSA liquidated damages to several plaintiffs who prevailed at a jury…
Mississippi Court Rejects Food-For-Overtime-Compensation Theory
As both lawyers and non-lawyers understand, overtime wages customarily are paid in cash, notwithstanding that the definition of “wages” under the FLSA incorporates “board, lodging, or other facilities.” 29 U.S.C. § 203(m). Employers providing non-monetary benefits to employees sometimes argue that such benefits are “facilities” within the meaning of the statute and thus should be credited against…