Report: Wage-and-Hour Suits Hit Record Number

A record number of federal wage and hour lawsuits were filed under the Fair Labor Standards Act in 2012, according to employment law firm Seyfarth Shaw.

There were 7,064 such cases filed in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2012, up from 2,035 in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2002, according to data from the law firm.

The claims forming the bulk of these numbers include: misclassification of employees, alleged uncompensated “work” performed off the clock and miscalculation of overtime pay for nonexempt workers, according to Richard Alfred, chair of Seyfarth’s wage and hour litigation practice.

“The release of the 2012 data reinforces the fact that these FLSA claims are still gaining momentum, and that they continue to be a major, growing threat to U.S. employers,” Alfred said.

Filed by Staffing Industry Analysts, a sister company of Workforce Management. To comment, email editors@workforce.com.

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