Kentucky Employment Law Blog

Wage Theft Enabled by Declining State Enforcement

States, particularly in the South, have abandoned or nearly abandoned efforts to enforce their wage and hour laws that require payment of overtime and/or the minimum wage, as reported in Politico, Minimum Wage Large Unenforced.

Wage theft is not a new problem, as we've discussed before here, Wage theft is wage theft and "What a thief does with his loot is immaterial to the victim's claim against him"; Wage Theft - The Good Guys Win One in Braun v Walmart, and at www.RobertAbellLaw.com:  Wage Theft and Lexington's New Minimum Wage Law; Unpaid Wages and Wage Theft; Wage Theft - 9 out of 10 Fast Food Workers Are Victims; Working Off the Clock & Wage Theft: Inside the McDonald's Suits.

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com

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Wal-Mart Settles Overtime and Break Time Lawsuits

Wal-Mart has agreed to settle dozens of lawsuits for unpaid overtime, claims that employees were forced to work off-the-clock, claims that employees' time cards were changed by store managers and claims that employees were denied break time required by wage and hour laws in many states, the New York Times reports, "Wal-Mart Settles 63 Lawsuits Over Wages."  The amount of the settlement will be between $352 and 640 million that will depend on workers' filing claims for wages due them.  The settlement covers 63 lawsuits pending in 42 state and federal courts.  

Wal-Mart recently settled a wage and hour lawsuit in Minnesota for $54 million, see "Working Off The Clock and Missed Breaks Law Suit Settled by Wal-Mart."  That settlement followed a state court verdict against Wal-Mart, see "Wal-Mart Found Liable For Underpaying Workers." 

Robert L. Abell

www.RobertAbellLaw.com

Working Off The Clock and Missed Breaks Lawsuit Settled By Wal-Mart

A lawsuit to recover unpaid wages for employees who were forced to work off the clock and to skip meal breaks has been settled by Wal-Mart for $54 million, the New York Times reports, "Wal-Mart To Pay $54 Million To Settle Wage Suit."  Last summer a state court in Minnesota found that Wal-Mart managers had made employees complete computerized in-house training off the clock and both compelled and tolerated employees skipping mandatory breaks.  

Robert L. Abell

www.RobertAbellLaw.com

Wal-Mart Found Liable for Underpaying Workers

    The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports that a Minnesota state court judge has ruled that Wal-Mart violated wage and hour laws by shortening workers' meal and rest breaks and forcing them to work off the clock, see "Judge: Wal-Mart Owes Minnesota Workers $6.5 Million for Off-Clock Work, Lost Breaks." $6.5 million was awarded to cover the workers' back pay.  The employees claimed that they were forced to work through their mandated by law breaks and that managers sometimes recorded breaks on their time cards that they never took.  A further trial is scheduled in the fall to determine possible punitive damages and other penalties.  The Minnesota case follows other similar decisions against Wal-Mart in Pennsylvania, California and Colorado.  About 70 similar cases remain pending against Wal-Mart in various courts around the country. 

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com