Education Law - SchoolNET

Southern States are the Target of Wage and Hour Claims

In the past year, plaintiffs attorneys have taken advantage of poor, misleading or non-existent wage records of numerous school districts. Lawsuits have been filed against 97 of Mississippi's 152 school boards. Plaintiffs attorneys have also advertised a toll free number in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee and Missouri that school district employees could call if they thought they have not received all the overtime pay they were entitled to. This trend may continue. . .

The Fair Labor Standards Act regulates employee overtime requiring employers to keep accurate records of the hours worked by employees eligible for overtime and puts the burden on the employer for proving proper documentation and demonstrating that the records are accurate.

Districts should be aware that some issues in the litigated cases involved paying bus drivers a flat fee for out of town trips rather than receiving time and one half over 40 hours worked. Other matters involved overtime eligibility, dual employment and blended rates.

Damages for this type of action can include recovery for unpaid overtime, damages and attorney fees.

To protect your District from becoming the next District "in the headlines", we suggest that your District review its current policy on overtime, dual employment practices, and record keeping practices and conduct an internal investigation to ensure principals or other administrators are complying with the law.

If you have any questions involving this or other matters, please call any member of our Education Practice Group.