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 ...
Read More »Tag Archives: misclassification
VA Beach Settles “White Collar” FLSA Lawsuit with EMS Captains
The City of Virginia Beach, Virginia has agreed to a $200,000 settlement with 8 Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Captains following a November 2020 lawsuit for unpaid overtime. The captains alleged the city misclassified them as overtime exempt “white collar” employees in violation of the FLSA and Virginia state law. The terms of the settlement require the city to pay a ...
Read More »The City of Lawrence, KS agrees to pay almost $1 Million in back OT to several dozen police sergeants, fire captains, and other city employees following FLSA review
The City of Lawrence, Kansas has voluntarily agreed to pay $998,600 to 24 police sergeants, 21 fire captains, and 3 other city employees following a recent FLSA review. The review, which was requested by a group of fire captains in 2019, found that the city improperly classified numerous city employees as overtime exempt. As a result of the city’s misclassification ...
Read More »Firefighter/Medics Assigned to EMS Companies and the FLSA’s 207(k) Exemption
In this Vlog, Curt Varone and I discuss a recent federal court decision that invalidated one Texas fire departments use of the FLSA’s §207(k) partial overtime exemption for firefighter/medics assigned to EMS companies. Here is more on this important ruling. Ruling in FF/Medics’ FLSA Overtime Lawsuit Stresses Importance of FD Policies and Procedures
Read More »Judge Rules WA State Fire Captains are Entitled to FLSA Overtime
Unites States Federal District Court Judge Rosanna Malouf Peterson has ruled in favor of thirteen Hanford, Washington fire captains in their pursuit of FLSA overtime. This judgement is the latest in a series of recent rulings involving fire officers and FLSA overtime eligibility. For more on those see: Federal Magistrate Judge Dismisses OT Claims by VA Battalion Chiefs Absent Trial ...
Read More »Georgia EMT Files FLSA Suit Against County
A Georgia EMT filed a federal lawsuit earlier this month alleging his employer, Meriwether County Fire Rescue (MCFR) failed to pay him—and other similarly situated EMTs—overtime in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). David Barbee filed the lawsuit on May 10, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. Barbee alleges he worked as an ...
Read More »No Overtime for Washington State Battalion Chiefs
In what is likely to be the first of several legal decisions involving fire department shift commanders and Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) overtime eligibility, eight current and former Vancouver, Washington battalion chiefs (BCs) have lost their bids for FLSA overtime. This litigation began almost two years ago, after a small group of current and former BCs filed a federal ...
Read More »Firefighter/Medics as §207(k) Firefighters
Today’s FLSA Question: I am the chief of a small municipal fire department. In addition to myself, we have 21 full-time firefighter/medics that work an average of 56 hours per week. They rotate between all the apparatus, but the vast majority of their time is spent on the ambulances. A couple of firefighter/medics have stated they should receive overtime after ...
Read More »Mississippi City Faces FLSA Lawsuit from Former 911 Dispatcher
Cody Inman, a former 911 dispatcher for the City of Water Valley, Mississippi, has filed a federal lawsuit seeking back overtime and straight time wages in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi. The suit, which was filed November 8, 2018, alleges the city misclassified Inman as an “employee engaged in fire protection activities” (§207(k) firefighter) in ...
Read More »Fire Chiefs, Comp Time, and the FLSA
Question: I recently accepted a position as a fire chief for a small department. I just retired as a battalion chief from a larger neighboring department. My new department considers my position as overtime exempt. I know I will be working well over 40 hours per week. During the interview process I was assured I could accrue comp time, since ...
Read More »