Tag Archives: compensable hours worked

Today’s FLSA Question: I work as a full-time fire lieutenant for a combination fire department. Our full-time firefighters and officers work a 24/48 schedule. We also have a small group of volunteer firefighters that assist at larger incidents. I am on my department’s grant committee. The committee consists of myself, the Fire Marshal, and the Assistant Chief. I am the ...

Today’s FLSA Question: I am a full-time paid firefighter in a small rural combination fire department. We have 12 full-time firefighters and another dozen active volunteers. Our department has strict rules that forbid our paid firefighters volunteering their time for the department. Recently, the department began allowing the volunteer firefighters the opportunity to pick up “per diem” shifts. The volunteers ...

A group of three Mobile, Alabama Police Department K-9 handlers have filed a federal lawsuit alleging the City of Mobile is violating the FLSA by not properly compensating them for all of the time spent caring for their four-legged partners. Wage and hour claims related to “off-the-clock” work activities like this are relatively commonplace in today’s workplace. The FLSA requires ...

A former emergency dispatcher for the City of Jonesboro, Arkansas has filed a federal lawsuit alleging the city of Jonesboro violated both the FLSA and Arkansas state law. The lawsuit was filed by Laura Trullinger on behalf of herself and other similarly situated individuals [i.e., other city workers] in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, earlier ...

According to AFGE Local 4060, the union that represents thousands of Federal Emergency Management Agency [FEMA] workers, a $16.5 million settlement has been reached following a 2018 grievance for unpaid overtime. According to the union’s president Steven Reaves the bulk of the settlement funds will be distributed to effected employees based on various factors and data and will likely take ...

Today’s FLSA Question: I am a fire chief for a small suburban fire department. Our local fire chiefs’ association is hosting a one-day presentation on leadership to be held at a neighboring community’s recreation facility. I am encouraging many of my personnel to attend what I believe will be a very valuable and worthwhile learning opportunity. Additionally, I will reimburse ...

Cayla Jackson, a former dispatcher and jailer for the Prairie County Arkansas Sheriff’s Department has filed a lawsuit against her former employer for multiple violations of both the FLSA and the Arkansas Minimum Wage Act. Jackson further claims that many other county dispatchers and jailers are not receiving overtime or straight time pay as required by both federal and state ...

Wake County, North Carolina has reached a very quick settlement with a group of current and former paramedics following a March 2021 FLSA lawsuit in which county medics alleged “miscalculated overtime premiums.” The settlement requires Wake County pay a total of $297,121.90 to settle all claims for back wages and liquidated damages with all plaintiffs. Additionally, the county will pay ...

Today’s FLSA Question: I am the fire chief of a full-time paid municipal fire department. Several of our firefighters and officers have been voluntarily attending on-campus classes in several different programs offered through the National Fire Academy (NFA). As a policy, the department provides these members with paid time off (without using vacation time or requiring shift trades) for all ...

This is the first of several posts dedicated to new guidance issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) on wage and hour issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the compensability of certain health related job requirements and activities. The DOL’s Wage and Hour Division issued this guidance on April 26, 2021 as part of a new initiative entitled ...