Tag Archives: firefighters

Firefighters, Required Pre-Shift Meeting and the FLSA

Today’s FLSA Question: I am a paid firefighter in a small full-time fire department. My department has one station and a total of 7 firefighters on-duty per shift. We work 24-hour shifts that start at 7 am. We rotate ride positions between two engines and an EMS unit. Our department’s policy requires that all personnel report to the shift captain ...

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Collective Bargaining, Comp Time, and the FLSA

Today’s FLSA Question: My fire department has a firefighter out on long-term leave. He is receiving his normal salary by utilizing his accrued sick leave while out of work. While on leave he performed six hours of computer type work from home. This work wasn’t required. He volunteered to file some reports related to grants and other computer work. As ...

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$16.5 Million Settlement Reached in FEMA Unpaid Overtime Claim

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 ...

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Dallas Firefighters Claim City Shorted them on Overtime Pay

The Dallas Fire Fighters Association is claiming that the City of Dallas, Texas has failed to pay hundreds of firefighters’ tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid overtime dating back several months. According to union officials, the city failed to pay some firefighters overtime for hours worked during the months of December 2021 and January 2022, in violation of city ...

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Louisiana Fire Protection District Faces FLSA Lawsuit

The Livingston Parish Fire Protection District 5, in Denham Springs, Louisiana is facing an FLSA lawsuit filed by a former fire district employee. Former Livingston Parish Captain Brian Jackson filed the lawsuit last week in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana. Jackson’s complaint contains two basic allegations. First, the district failed to pay Jackson and other unnamed ...

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Paramedic Sign-On Bonuses, the Regular Rate and the FLSA

Today’s FLSA Question: My fire department initiated a “sign-on bonus” program for paramedics a couple of years ago. Under the terms of the program, lateral paramedic transfers received a one-time $5,000 sign-on bonus at the time of hire. In exchange for the bonus, the paramedic signed an agreement that they would remain employed with the fire department for at least ...

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Lockheed Martin Corp. Facing FLSA Lawsuit from Firefighters

A group of four in-house firefighters that work for Lockheed Martin Corp.’s aircraft plant in Marietta, Georgia recently filed a lawsuit against the corporation alleging the company fails to pay overtime as required by federal law. The lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia on April 6, contains allegations that the defense ...

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California City Faces FLSA Overtime Lawsuit from Battalion Chief

The City of Encinitas, California is the latest city to face an FLSA overtime lawsuit from a fire department battalion chief. The lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California on April 8, alleges the city misclassifies battalion chiefs as overtime exempt employees in violation of the FLSA. As of now, the lawsuit ...

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Illinois 911 Dispatchers File FLSA Lawsuit Following DOL Investigation

Several current and former civilian emergency (911) dispatchers from Evanston, Illinois have filed a lawsuit alleging the City of Evanston failed to pay them overtime as required by both federal and state law. The dispatchers allege, in a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on April 4, that the city has a practice ...

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