Tag Archives: off-the-clock

DOL Issues New Guidance Related to the COVID-19 Pandemic Likely to Impact Firefighters, EMTs, and Other Essential Public Safety Personnel – Part I – Employer Mandated Temperature Checks

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 ...

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Claims of Unpaid Overtime and Possible FLSA Retaliation for an Ohio City

A Columbiana Ohio, police officer recently filed a rather straight-forward lawsuit containing allegations of unpaid overtime. Patrolman Bryan Granchie, a K-9 officer for the Columbiana Police Department filed the lawsuit, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, alleging the city failed to pay him for hours worked caring for his K-9 work partner “Csuti.” Lawsuits for ...

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TN County and Medics Settle Overtime Lawsuit

Putnam County, Tennessee has reached a $280,000 settlement agreement with a group of current and former EMTs following a 2019 lawsuit over alleged FLSA violations. The suit, which was initially filed by a lone paramedic last July, contained three basic allegations. First, the county failed to pay for off-the-clock pre-and-post shift work, second, the county improperly implemented the “fluctuating workweek ...

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Paramedics, Pre-and-Post Shift Activities, Retaliation, and the FLSA

Today’s FLSA Question: I was a paramedic for a local fire department. The department has a policy that requires medics brief each other face-to-face at the beginning and end of each 12-hour shift. Medics must fill each other in on the calls that were run, medications used and replaced, account for on-board narcotics, computer, and radio equipment. This process takes ...

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Las Vegas Settles Lone Firefighter’s Overtime Lawsuit For More Than $500K

The City of Las Vegas has agreed to pay a veteran city firefighter $560,000 to settle a 2019 lawsuit for unpaid overtime. The settlement follows allegations of unpaid overtime made by Eric Scheumann, an 18-year veteran and current firefighter/engineer for the Las Vegas Fire Department. Scheumann alleged the city failed to pay him for more than 4,500 work hours between ...

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$1.25 Million Settlement Reached in FLSA Suit by TN Correctional Employees for Unpaid Work Before and After Scheduled Shifts

Madison County, Tennessee, has agreed to a $1.25 million settlement with over 100 county employees following an FLSA lawsuit filed earlier this year. In July 2019, Natasha Grayson filed the suit in the U.S. District Court from the Western District of Tennessee on behalf of herself and other similarly situated county employees. The suit quickly grew to include over 100 ...

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$247k Settlement in Oklahoma Fire Marshal’s Unpaid OT and FLSA Retaliation Lawsuit

Stan Smith, a former Fire Marshal for the City of Sand Springs, Oklahoma Fire Department has agreed to a $247,500 settlement with the city following his 2017 lawsuit over unpaid overtime. Smith filed a rather common straight-forward FLSA lawsuit in September 2017. Smith alleged that he regularly performed work during his unpaid scheduled lunch hour. The FLSA requires employers pay ...

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More than 2,500 FDNY EMTs Prevail in FLSA Lawsuit Against City

A New York jury has found the City of New York violated the FLSA by not paying EMTs for the time spent working before and after assigned shifts. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, on February 13, 2013 by more than 2,500 FDNY EMTs and paramedics. According to attorneys representing ...

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$1.2 Million Settlement Reached in VA Police FLSA Suit

A lawsuit filed by two Roanoke, Virginia police officers alleging the city’s police department violated both the FLSA and Virginia state wage law has ended with a $1.2 million court approved settlement. The suit, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia, on May 11, 2018 alleged the city failed to pay police officers for ...

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