Damages, Fee Award Against Trustees Vacated

Va. Better Venue for Discount-Store FLSA Suit

By Deborah Elkins
Published: July 12, 2012
Tags: Judge Raymond A. Jackson, Labor, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A Norfolk U.S. District Court accepts a transfer of venue from an Illinois federal court of this putative class action under the Fair Labor Standards Act alleging defendant Dollar Tree Stores Inc. required or permitted employees to work “off the clock” and overtime without compensation; nearly every factor – situs of material events and convenience [...]

No RICO Claim for ‘Illegal’ Poultry-Plant Hires

By Deborah Elkins
Published: July 11, 2012
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Judge Barbara Milano Keenan, Labor

A group of hourly-wage employees at Perdue poultry processing plants have not stated a civil conspiracy claim under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act against the company with allegations that company personnel conspired to hire illegal aliens in order to depress wages paid to all hourly employees; the 4th Circuit says plaintiffs did not [...]

No Retaliation Claim from Constructive Discharge

By Deborah Elkins
Published: June 6, 2012
Tags: Judge Norman K. Moon, Labor, U.S. District Court - Western District

An employee who complained that defendant GoBo Inc., which operated a Bojangle’s restaurant franchise in Lynchburg, violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by deducting his pay for sick leave from his vacation pay, cannot state a claim for retaliation based on his alleged discharge, and the Lynchburg U.S. District Court grants summary judgment for employer. [...]

Owner Personally Liable for Overtime Pay

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 15, 2012
Tags: Judge Liam O'Grady, Labor, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

The owner of an “Any Floors” business owes plaintiff laborer total damages of $86,450 in back pay and overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and the owner may be personally liable, despite using the corporate form for her business, says an Alexandria U.S. District Court. It is clear plaintiff was an employee. The [...]

State Wage Law Not Preempted by FLSA

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 11, 2012
Tags: Judge Henry E. Hudson, Labor, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Federal overtime-pay law under the Fair Labor Standards Act does not preempt a Virginia statute that provides for overtime pay at a lower threshold of hours regularly scheduled during a “recurring and fixed period,” and the Richmond U.S. District Court refuses to grant the city partial summary judgment on a claim filed by Richmond city [...]

Union Member Claims Free Speech

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 6, 2012
Tags: Judge James P. Jones, Labor, U.S. District Court - Western District

A union member who claims she became the target for harassment and retaliation by union and company officials after she reported to regional union officials that the local union president and vice president were observed viewing pornographic images on a union computer in the union office has not stated a claim under the Labor Management [...]

Employee Reinstated Despite ‘Zero Tolerance’

By Deborah Elkins
Published: February 7, 2012
Tags: Judge James P. Jones, Labor, U.S. District Court - Western District

A Big Stone Gap U.S. District Court upholds an arbitrator’s decision that an employee who had worked in the coal industry for 32 years with no history of drug use could be reinstated to his job performing electrical and mechanical repair after a random drug screen showed marijuana, which the employee admitted he had “toked” [...]

Intracompany Complaints Are ‘Protected Activity’

By Deborah Elkins
Published: January 31, 2012
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Judge Allyson K. Duncan, Labor

A medical technologist’s complaints within her company about time-sheet alterations that allegedly violated the Fair Labor Standards Act are protected activity and she may sue under the FLSA’s antiretaliation provision, 29 U.S.C. § 215(a)(3), on a complaint that she was terminated for her intracompany complaints. Plaintiff was a medical technologist at defendant laboratory. She met [...]

Arbitration Ordered on Job-Preference Accord

By Deborah Elkins
Published: January 17, 2012
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Judge Albert Diaz, Labor

The 4th Circuit upholds the district court order requiring the parties to arbitrate the United Mine Workers’ limited job-preference agreement with a coal company, as the appellate court concludes the coal company has not rebutted the ordinary presumption in favor of arbitrability. Appellee UMW entered into a limited job-preference agreement with Peabody Coal Company. The [...]