The Wage and Hour/Collective Action group focuses on employers' defense of high exposure cases. Over the past five years, we have seen a dramatic rise in the number of FLSA Collective Actions which have been filed against employers. These cases are document-intensive and require specific knowledge of the intricacies of the Fair Labor Standards Act and the unique burdens placed on employers. Many of these cases are "off the clock" cases in which employees claim that time records are inaccurate because the employer forced employees to work "off the clock." Defending these claims, therefore, requires knowledge of creative methods of proving that employees actually worked the hours for which they were paid. Our team is very experienced in analyzing these claims and developing unconventional ways of proving that employees were, in fact, fully compensated.
Not only do FLSA Collective Actions involve unique burdens of proof on actual alleged violations of the FLSA, they also involve a very lenient standard for plaintiffs to certify a class. We have extensive experience in understanding how and when classes are certified. Many defendants spend thousands of dollars fighting the wrong battle - trying to defeat the conditional class. When the case is suitable for fighting conditional certification, then of course we do so. Oftentimes, however, the best way to defend these cases is focusing on proving that the employees were properly paid and were not required to work off the clock. Understanding the intricacies of these claims is key to successfully defending them.