Firefighters Claim Town Failed to Pay Them Overtime in New Lawsuit
Over 60 former and current firefighters from the town of Brownsburg have filed a lawsuit, claiming that town officials failed to adequately pay them for overtime. According to the lawsuit filed on Monday in federal court, the Hendricks County Local 4406 of the International Association of Firefighters is claiming that the town of Brownsburg violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by failing to pay its workers overtime. The lawsuit claims that Brownsburg adopted an “alternative work period” for the workers, which stated that if an individual worked more than 212 hours in a 28-day period, the town was required to pay them overtime.
Officials stated that the workers normally work at least 216-240 hours every 28-day pay period. But the lawsuit claims that the town of Brownsburg “refuses to pay… overtime wages for any amount of time worked over 212 hours during (the) 28-day… work period.”
According to the lawsuit, “(The town’s) overtime payment practices affect all Plaintiffs in that the Defendant regularly fails to pay Plaintiffs overtime wages for the overtime hours that Plaintiffs have worked.”
The lawsuit further claims that the town did not “properly calculate” the proper overtime wage rates for its workers. The documents said that the town has reportedly been on notice of the violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and has “refused to remedy the issues.”
The lawsuit is demanding that the plaintiffs recover liquidated damages “in an amount equal to their backpay damages” for the town’s “failure to pay overtime compensation” as well as liquidated damages equal to unpaid compensation.
The plaintiffs are further asking a judge to order “a complete and accurate accounting” of all the unpaid compensation to which each Plaintiff is entitled,” according to the legal documents.
“While we always prefer to resolve issues amicably through dialogue, it is now necessary to bring this matter before a federal court,” the plaintiffs said in a statement. “We are confident that the court will enforce our members’ rights and ensure they are compensated fairly. Local 4406 remains committed to advocating for the rights of our members and ensuring compliance with federal labor laws. We urge the town of Brownsburg to reconsider its stance and work towards an amicable resolution.”
Understanding the suit
Employers are supposed to pay their employees time-and-a-half for every hour worked over 40 hours in a week. Failure to do so is a violation of the FLSA. Sometimes, employers get it into their head that they can impose an alternate method to calculate overtime. They can’t. Federal law establishes the rules when it comes to paying overtime.
Talk to a Tampa, Fl, FLSA Attorney Today
The Tampa, FL FLSA attorneys at Florin Gray represent the interests of workers in lawsuits filed against employers who have failed to pay overtime to their employees. Call our office today to schedule an appointment, and we can begin discussing your next steps right away.
