In August 2006, the American Federation of Government Employees Local 12 filed a grievance against the United States Departmetn of Labor on behalf of all bargaining unit employees. The Grievance alleged violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), a federal law that protects the rights of American workers.

The Law Offices of Snider and Associates, as the legal representatives for the Union, are working hard for the bargaining unit employees to ensure that their rights under federal law are upheld. As part of the process, we have been busily contacting AFGE local 12 OPM grievants about their job duties and how much unpaid overtime they have worked.

Status

In mediation, the parties have come to agreement on which positions should be covered by the FLSA and which incumbents are eligible for back pay. Click here for a list of all AFGE Local 12 Bargaining Unit positions that are now covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act. The parties are currently addressing damages.

Who is covered by the Grievance?

All bargaining unit employees whether or not they members of the union, are covered by this grievance.

What is the FLSA?

The FLSA protects Federal employees' rights by providing time-and-a-half pay for overtime work, payment for work "suffered and/or permitted" by the agency (not ordered or approved) and the right to choose overtime instead of comp time. But not every Federal Employee is covered by the FLSA. If an employee is exempt (not covered by the FLSA), he or she gets capped overtime for Ordered and Approved overtime (under Title V, not the FLSA), a "thanks for staying late" (if you're lucky) for overtime that is not ordered and approved, and can be forced to take comp time for ordered and approved work.

How will this grievance affect me?

The law says that when a federal employee works for his or her Agency, the Agency has to pay that employee. If an employee worked but didn't get paid, the Agency owes that employee money for the time spent working. In legal terms, the employees must be "made whole," which means that the Agency pays the employee what he or she is owed, under the law.

Employees are underpaid when they receive capped overtime instead of uncapped overtime, comp time instead of uncapped overtime, and are not paid at all for "suffered and permitted" overtime that was not ordered or approved.
In short, an employee who is not classified properly under the FLSA may have been underpaid for their work in the past. In such a case, the agency would owe the employee their due compensation.

Attorneys and paralegals from Snider and Associates have been calling DOL employees to find out how much time people have been working without getting paid properly. They also have been discussing what kind of evidence the Union can present to prove that employees have been coming to work early, working through lunch, leaving late, taking work home, and coming in on weekends and Federal Holidays. If you have not been called yet, you can call 410 653-9060 and ask for any of the FLSA paralegals, or take our online survey.

What must be done to prove our case?

The Union must prove that employees actually performed work for the Agency for which they were not paid, that under the law they should have been paid for if they had been classified FLSA non-exempt. This is in addition to "underpaid" overtime and "comp time" damages.

If you would like further information about this grievance and how our firm is working for you, please contact your union or our offices at (410) 653-9060.