Tag Archives: firefighters

Iowa City Looks to Settle FLSA Lawsuit over Misclassification of Fire Captains and Battalion Chiefs

The City of Muscatine, Iowa is the latest city looking to settle an overtime lawsuit filed by several senior fire officers. In a September 2021 lawsuit, a group of five firefighters alleged the city improperly classified fire captains and battalion chiefs as overtime exempt employees. According to the firefighters, the city changed pay practices and started paying captains overtime in ...

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Virginia Battalion Chiefs File FLSA Lawsuit

A group of ten Alexandria, Virginia battalion chiefs filed an FLSA lawsuit this past week alleging the city improperly classifies them as overtime exempt “white-collar” employees in violation of both federal and state law. According to the complaint, six of the battalion chiefs are assigned to 24-hour shifts and serve as “Operational Battalion Chiefs.” The remaining four plaintiffs work a ...

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Former Arkansas Sheriff’s Department Dispatcher Files FLSA Lawsuit Alleging Misclassification, Uncompensated Pre-and-Post Shift Activities, and Comp Time Violations

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 ...

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Tulsa Firefighters File FLSA Suit

A group of thirteen Tulsa, Oklahoma firefighters have filed an FLSA lawsuit against the City of Tulsa, the mayor, and the city’s chief operating officer. The thirteen filed the lawsuit on behalf of themselves and other similarly situated employees [i.e., other Tulsa firefighters that will likely join the lawsuit over the next few months] in the U.S. District Court for ...

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Platoon Bid, Collective Bargaining, and the FLSA

Today’s FLSA Question: I am the union president for a mid-sized municipal fire department. Our labor agreement allows us to conduct an annual bid. Basically, all shift personnel bid by seniority in rank to a specific platoon (A, B, or C) and piece of apparatus once a year. The only “catch” is that the bid must occur at “no-cost” to ...

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Wake County, NC and Paramedics Reach a Quick Settlement Following FLSA Lawsuit

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 ...

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Federal Judge Approves Settlement in Virginia Beach FLSA Misclassification Lawsuit

Senior United States District Court Judge Rebecca Beach Smith has approved a $200,000 settlement in a FLSA misclassification lawsuit filed late last year by a group of Emergency Medical Service (EMS) Captains, in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The settlement, which was officially approved by the court on Friday December 10, 2021, requires the City of Virginia Beach to pay a total ...

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Firefighter’s Hours Worked, Paid Sick Leave, and the FLSA

Today’s FLSA Question: I recently read your article entitled “Firefighters, Mandatory Overtime, and the FLSA” and have a somewhat related follow-up question. I work for a large county fire department. We also work a 24/48 schedule with a scheduled Kelly-day every three weeks for a 48-hour average workweek. However, we receive overtime for all additional hours worked outside of our ...

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