Smiley v. DuPont
Oct 07, 2016OUTCOME: win on appeal to Third Circuit
On October 7, 2016 MOREMARRONE scored a major victory for hourly workers in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, which unanimously reversed a District Court’s decision that would have let DuPont off the ... hook for wages in a collective/class action made up of workers who had been denied their overtime pay for “donning and doffing” uniforms and safety equipment, and for performing pre-shift and post-shift work. This major decision significantly defines enforcement under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In this decision in Smiley v. DuPont, the Third Circuit held that the District Court incorrectly concluded that the Fair Labor Standards Act allowed DuPont to avoid paying overtime by taking a “credit” for break time pay the employer had already paid, and using it to offset the employer’s overtime obligations under the FLSA for off-the-clock work. In its unanimous opinion the Third Circuit, agreeing with Thomas More Marrone’s argument, explained “Here, permitting DuPont to use pay given for straight time—and included in the regular rate of pay—as an offset against overtime pay is precisely the type of ‘creative bookkeeping’…the FLSA sought to eradicate.” The decision will have national implications because of the Third Circuit’s stature and its thorough analysis of the issue.
