protected activity

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The substantive provisions of the FLSA protect covered non-exempt employees’ right to receive minimum wage and, as applicable, overtime pay.  The statute’s anti-retaliation provision is co-extensive: it protects employees from termination or other adverse employment action in response to complaints that those provisions were violated.  The FLSA however does not extend anti-retaliation protections to employees…

One defense commonly asserted to retaliation claims under the FLSA (and most other anti-retaliation statutes) is whether the complaint or activity allegedly leading to the alleged adverse action constituted “protected activity” under the relevant statute. Seeking to clarify this standard, a Florida District Court Judge found the alleged complaints were not sufficiently specific to constitute…

Employers often are frustrated by an employee’s characterization in litigation of prior workplace complaints – many times dating back months or even years – as “protected activity” within the meaning of one or more employment statutes.  Distinguishing true “protected activity” from the a mere employee complaint can be a difficult task.  At the initial stage…

Consistent with a recent decision from the Eighth Circuit, the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently rejected a Plaintiff’s contention that her termination was related to alleged complaints she made regarding her former employer’s compliance with the FLSA. Lasater v. Tex. A&M University-Commerce, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 22118 (5th Cir. 2012).…

The Supreme Court recently ruled that the FLSA’s anti-retaliation provision protects oral complaints regarding issues “under or related to [the FLSA].” 29 U.S.C. § 215(a)(3). However, the Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently affirmed a District Court’s ruling that such anti-retaliation protections did not extend to a complaint about an employer’s policy regarding paid time…

As previously discussed, last March the Supreme Court ruled that the FLSA’s anti-retaliation provision protects “informal” complaints, i.e., unwritten complaints alleging violation of the FLSA are protected activity to support a retaliation complaint.  Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp., No. 09-834 (Mar. 22, 2011). However, the Court declined to resolve the open issue of…