In the case of Woodburn v. City of Henderson, corrections officers Kelly and Thomas Woodburn filed a lawsuit against the City of Henderson (the “City”) on behalf of themselves and other similarly situated employees who were required to work unpaid overtime.
The Woodburns provided details about their work schedules, hours worked, and pay rates during their employment. They further alleged that they were required to work unpaid overtime before and after their regular shifts, which amounted to approximately 60 minutes of unpaid overtime for Kelly and 45 minutes for Thomas on each shift. During those times, the Woodburns needed to change into and out of their uniforms, check their schedules, brief other officers, and either collect or lock up their vehicle or firearms supplies. The Woodburns claimed that this deprived them of thousands of dollars in overtime.
The Woodburns filed for a class action to include all existing or former City employees who were denied overtime pay. The City sought to dismiss the claim. They argued that the allegations were insufficient to allege a Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) violation. Additionally, the City also sought to strike any allegations that involved existing employees under the mandatory arbitration clause that precluded their participation in the lawsuit.
The court denied the City’s motion to dismiss. It was found that the Woodburns had met the standard for claiming an FLSA violation. Regarding the City’s motion to strike the allegations, the court stated that it was premature to address this argument and therefore denied the motion to strike.
The details for the proceedings of this case were not provided.
Key lessons from this case:
- Time spent on pre-shift and post-shift tasks can be considered compensable working time and may contribute to unpaid overtime.
- Employees can file lawsuits on behalf of other similarly situated employees, provided that enough evidence is shown.
- While detailed factual pleading is not explicitly required, providing comprehensive details about specific workweeks, hours worked, pay rates, and overtime hours can strengthen the FLSA claim.
If you want to know more about overtime regulations, read our guide on Nevada Overtime Laws.
