For 40 years, the majority of federal courts have followed the holding of Lynn’s Food Stores, Inc. v. U.S., 679 F.2d 1350 (11th Cir. 1982), that FLSA claims may be settled only through approval by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) or through a lawsuit filed by the individual, in which a court of competent jurisdiction enters a stipulated judgment, after reviewing the proposed settlement for fairness. Some other courts of appeals, either directly or indirectly, have reached the same conclusion. Increasingly, however, courts are questioning whether these holdings are sound law.
The FLSA contains two applicable provisions that come into play when an employee asserts a claim for unpaid minimum or overtime wages against their employer. Under 29 U.S.C. § 216(b), the employee may bring a private lawsuit in an appropriate state or federal court, either on an individual or collective (class) basis, and may recover both actual and liquidated damages. The law states, “The court in such action shall, in addition to any judgment awarded to the plaintiff or plaintiffs, allow a reasonable attorney’s fee to be paid by the defendant, and costs of the action.”
Alternatively, under Section 216(c), “[t]he [DOL] is authorized to supervise the payment of the unpaid minimum wages or the unpaid overtime compensation owing to any employee or employees … and the agreement of any employee to accept such payment shall upon payment in full constitute a waiver by such employee of any right he may have...
KENNESAW, Ga. (InvestigateTV) - A Kennesaw homeowner discovered someone filed a fraudulent insurance claim for fire damage on her renovated home, sparking a months-long battle to clear her record a...