Kansas City Employment Lawyer Blog

Christopher v. Smithkline Beecham Corporation, No. 10-15257

On August 10, 2010, the United States Department of Labor filed an amicus curae brief in support of the Plaintiffs, current and former pharmaceutical representatives, in the matter of Christopher v. Smithkline Beecham Corporation. Plaintiffs had originally brought an action seeking unpaid overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

The Defendant argued, and the District Court agreed, that Plaintiffs, a group of current and former pharmaceutical representatives were exempt salespersons within the meaning of the FLSA, and thus not entitled to overtime compensation under the FLSA. Plaintiffs appealed the District Court's order and the matter was raised to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The Department of Labor, in support of the plaintiffs-appellants, filed an amicus brief, arguing that the District Court erred when it determined that, as a matter of law, plaintiffs were exempt employees. The Department of Labor further argued that the District Court did not properly consider the Department's regulations and interpretations in making its ruling.

Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers are required to pay to nonexempt employees a premium of time and a half of the employees' regular rate for hours worked in excess of 40 in a workweek. Employees may bring actions to recover back wages on behalf of themselves and others similarly situated, in a collective action.

On August 10, 2010, United States District Court Judge Monti Belot found that Airplane Mechanics did not meet the Professional Exemption, and were entitled to receive overtime compensation under federal law. In June, 2009, David Dressler filed a lawsuit individually, and on behalf of similarly situated individuals against his former employer, Kansas Copters and Wings, Inc., alleging in part that his former employer failed to properly compensate him under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

Defendant contended that Plaintiff was exempt from overtime pursuant to the Professional Exemption, which requires 1) that the employee be paid a bona fide salary of at least $455.00 per week; and 2) that the employee's primary duty must be the performance of work requiring advanced knowledge in a field of science or learning customarily acquired by a prolonged course of specialized intellectual instruction. This primary duty test includes three elements: (1) The employee must perform work requiring advanced knowledge; (2) The advanced knowledge must be in a field of science or learning; and (3) The advanced knowledge must be customarily acquired by a prolonged course of specialized intellectual instruction. Dressler v. Kansas Copters and Wings, Inc., 2010 WL 3168358 at *3 (D.Kan.,2010).

In ruling in favor of the Plaintiff, the Court determined that while Plaintiff was involved in some job training, his work was not predominantly intellectual in character, and thus his job duties failed to satisfy the learned professional exemption. The Court further found that Plaintiff's job did not fall into the traditional professions listed in the regulation, including law, medicine, accounting, engineering, architecture, sciences, pharmacy and other similar occupations. Finally, the Court found that the Plaintiff's job training did not rise to the level associated with the learned professional exemption.

The parties conducted a trial in front of Judge Belot, and on August 10, the Court found in favor of the Plaintiffs, and awarded the Plaintiff back wages and attorneys' fees.

This week, Senator Robert Casey (D. Pennsylvania) introduced legislation to afford minimum wage and overtime coverage to the home care worker industry. The legislation aims to protect many employees who went without minimum wage and overtime protections since the law was enacted in 1938.

If the legislation passes, thousands of home health care workers may now be protected by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and eligible to receive the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour and time and a half for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek.

The legislation was introduced for the purpose of expanding the home care workforce, as needs grow for these services. It is estimated that by 2030, 78 million individuals from the "baby boom" generation will have qualified for Medicare. As the generation reaches 65, large demands will be placed on America's current health care system, creating new demands for the home health care industry.

Source:

The Senate gets its home care bill