Opting into the Lawsuit

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires qualified current and former employees who wish to participate in the IntelliQuick Lawsuit to “opt in” or request to join the case within a specific time frame.

Under the FLSA, only individuals who “opt in” to a lawsuit are eligible to recover unpaid overtime and minimum wage. The suit also seeks reimbursement for deductions from their pay that employees should not be required to pay. Payment of back wages and reimbursement of deductions could be limited to certain time frames called “statutes of limitations.” Some limitations could be as short as one year from when suit was filed or up to three years from when suit is filed or from when an opt-in form is filed.

Retaliation

It is a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) for any person to discharge or in any other manner discriminate against any employee because such employee has filed any complaint or instituted or caused to be instituted any proceeding under or related to the FLSA, or has testified or is about to testify in any such proceeding, or has served or is about to serve on an industry committee.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) anti-retaliation provision protects employees who complain to their employers about wage and hour violations, in addition to protecting those employees who file formal proceedings with Department of Labor or in federal court. This protection is designed to ensure that employees are not compelled to risk their jobs in order to assert their wage and hour rights under the FLSA. The United States Supreme Court recently held that the anti-retaliation provision of the FLSA protects oral as well as written complaints of violations of the FLSA.

Any employee who is discharged or otherwise retaliated against because he or she has complained to her employer, filed a complaint or lawsuit, joined or opted-in to a lawsuit, or cooperated in an investigation, may file a retaliation complaint with the Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division or may file a private cause of action seeking appropriate remedies including, but not limited to, employment reinstatement, lost wages and an additional equal amount of liquidated damages.

To learn more about your protections under the FLSA, please read this Fact Sheet from the Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division.

In addition, the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) protects an employee’s right to discuss with their co-workers their wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment. The NLRA also protects an employee’s right to organize or join a union to negotiate with your employer concerning your wages hours and other terms and conditions of employment. Under the NLRA, it is illegal for an employer to retaliate against you or threaten retaliation for engaging in concerted activity (i.e., discussing wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment) for the mutual aid and protection of the employees. It is also illegal for an employer to question employees about union support or activities in a manner that discourages you from engaging in that activity.

To learn more about your rights under the NLRA, please read this Notice from the National Labor Relations Board.

In Ford v. Alfaro, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found that an employee’s resignation after the employer stated that “he did not want [the employee] to work for him any more” after the employee complained to the Department of Labor was retaliatory. 785 F.2d 835, 841 (9th Cir. 1986). The Court also found that threats of serious bodily harm, harassment from the employer’s son, and failure to give the employee sufficient work instructions that impeded the employee’s ability to perform his job were retaliatory. Id. at 842. Some other examples of retaliation may include:

• Terminating or discharging you
  
• Demoting you
  
• Reducing your pay
  
• Changing your duties or responsibilities
  
• Reducing or changing your hours worked
  
• Unfair treatment or treating you differently than others
  
• Denying you opportunities available to others
  
• Ostracizing or excluding you from meetings, trainings, or other company gatherings
  
• Harassing your or creating a hostile work environment
  
• Threatening termination, reduction in pay or hours, or changes to duties
  

If you believe you have been retaliated against for opting-in to this lawsuit by filing a Consent to Sue form or for complaining about or discussing your hours, wages or other terms and conditions of employment, please contact us immediately so we can help you to evaluate whether you have a retaliation claim under the FLSA or NLRA.