Tag Archives: executive

Fire Service Implications from the Department of Labor’s Planned Minimum Salary Increases for White Collar Overtime Exempt Employees

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is poised to increase the minimum the salary necessary to classify workers [including many high-ranking fire officers] as overtime exempt under the FLSA. The new rule, which will likely go into effect in early 2024 will raise the minimum required weekly salary for overtime exempt white-collar employees by $375 per week and the minimum ...

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Orlando District Chiefs Allege Retaliation Following FLSA Misclassification Lawsuit

The City of Orlando is facing allegations of retaliation from several District Fire Chiefs following a recent federal lawsuit over unpaid overtime. According to the district chiefs, the city has announced wide-spread transfers among high-ranking city fire officers. The transfers will move several dozen Orlando Fire Department District and Assistant Chiefs to different shifts and stations. The district chiefs are ...

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Cobb County, Georgia Facing Another FLSA Lawsuit from a Battalion Chief

Cobb County, Georgia is no stranger to FLSA litigation. The county is yet again facing an FLSA lawsuit related to alleged misclassifying senior fire officers as overtime exempt executive employees. The most recent lawsuit contains very similar allegations as another misclassification lawsuit filed by a group of ten Cobb County battalion Chiefs last April. Cobb County Fire Department Battalion Chief ...

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Orlando District Chiefs File FLSA Lawsuit

A group of twenty-four current and former “District Chiefs” from the Orlando Fire Department have filed a lawsuit in federal court alleging the city misclassified them as overtime exempt employees in violation of the FLSA. This lawsuit is the latest in a series of similar lawsuits filed by high-ranking fire officers from across the country seeking overtime pay. Quoting from ...

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GA Battalion Chiefs File FLSA Lawsuit

Ten Cobb County, Georgia battalion chiefs have filed a federal lawsuit alleging the county has failed to pay them overtime as required by federal law. More specifically, the battalion chiefs claim the county misclassified them as overtime exempt “white collar” employees in violation of the FLSA. Quoting from the complaint: Within the last three years, and continuing to date, while ...

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Part-Time Fire Chiefs and Compensation Part II

My friend and colleague Curt Varone recently posted a story on his Fire Law Blog entitled, “Part-Time Fire Chiefs and Compensation.” The post answered a burning question that Curt received on whether part-time fire chiefs can be classified as overtime exempt executive employees. Curt did a great job answering that question and providing some alternative options for compensating part-time fire ...

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Executive Exemption and Fire Officers

In this Fire Law VLOG, Curt Varone and Bill Maccarone discuss three recent settlements involving high-ranking fire officers and their entitlement to FLSA overtime. What makes a high-level fire officer an overtime exempt executive or administrative employee under the FLSA? The FLSA and Department of Labor (DOL) regulations contain a long list of requirements necessary to classify any employee as ...

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Selma AL Reaches “Confidential” Settlement Following FLSA Misclassification Lawsuit

The City of Selma, Alabama has reached an undisclosed “confidential” settlement with three fire department assistant fire marshals/fire investigators following their 2021 lawsuit for unpaid overtime, breach of contract, and FLSA retaliation. The plaintiffs’ complaint set forth three basic allegations. First, the plaintiffs claim the city misclassified them as overtime exempt employees in violation of the FLSA. Second, the city ...

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Georgia County Facing FLSA Lawsuit from Former Battalion Chief

Former Lumpkin County Fire Department Battalion Chief Sharon Booth has filed suit against her former employer alleging that the county misclassified her as an overtime exempt employee in violation of the FLSA. The lawsuit, which was filed on November 30, 2022, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia contains rather straightforward claims of unpaid overtime for ...

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