Where Alexandria fire department battalion chiefs argued they were owed overtime under federal and state law, but they qualified as a highly compensated employee, or HCE, they were exempt from the overtime rules.
Background
Plaintiffs are or have been fire department battalion chiefs, or BCs, for the City of Alexandria. From 2019 to 2022, when plaintiffs worked overtime hours, the city paid them their normal hourly rate. Plaintiffs claim they were owed the equivalent of one-and-a-half times their straight-time rate for those overtime hours under the Fair Labor Standards Act, or FLSA.
Plaintiffs also seek additional damages under the Virginia Wage Payment Act and Virginia Overtime Wage Act. The city argues that plaintiffs are exempt from the FLSA’s overtime pay requirement because of their compensation structure and the nature of their work duties.
The city filed a motion for summary judgment raising the affirmative defense that plaintiffs were exempt from protection under the FLSA. The plaintiffs then filed a partial motion for summary judgment, arguing that only the issue of damages need be resolved at trial. After both motions were fully briefed, this court ordered supplemental briefing in light of the recent Supreme Court decision in Helix Energy Sols. Grp., Inc. v. Hewitt, 143 S. Ct. 677 (2023).
To qualify as a HCE, an employee must be paid on a salary basis, meet certain annual compensation thresholds and “regularly and customarily perform[]” just “one or more of the...
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