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Friday, March 29, 2024

Man sues Expro Americas for FLSA violations

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HOUSTON (Legal Newsline) - A former employee has filed a class action lawsuit against Expro Americas LLC after he claims it violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.




John Cormier is a well tester and he and the class members were paid a guaranteed shop rate and a day rate for time spent in the field and/or offshore, according to a complaint filed Oct. 31 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.








While the exact job titles and job duties may differ, these employees are subjected to the same or similar illegal pay practices for similar work, according to the suit.




"The daily and weekly activities of the putative class members were routine and largely governed by standardized plans, procedures and checklists created by defendant and/or the operator defendant contracted with," the complaint states. "Virtually every job function was pre-determined by defendant and/or the operator defendant contracted with, including the tools to use at a job site, the data to compile, the schedule of work, and related work duties."




Cormier claims the class members were prohibited from varying their job duties outside of the pre-determined parameters.




For the purposes of an FLSA overtime claim, the class members performed substantially similar job duties related to well testing, according to the suit.




"The putative class members also worked similar hours and were denied overtime as a result of the same illegal pay practice," the complaint states. "The putative class members were generally scheduled to work substantially more than 40 hours a week."




Cormier claims instead of paying them overtime, the defendant paid the class members a guaranteed shop rate and a day rate for time spent in the field and/or offshore.




The defendant denied the class members overtime for any and all hours worked in excess of 40 hours in a single workweek, according to the suit.




Cormier claims the defendant violated the FLSA by "employing employees in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce within the meaning of the FLSA for workweeks longer than forty (40) hours without compensating such employees for their employment in excess of forty (40) hours per week at rates no less than 1 and ½ times the regular rates for which they were employed."




"Defendant knowingly, willfully or in reckless disregard carried out this illegal pattern or practice of failing to pay the putative class members overtime compensation," the complaint states. "Defendant's failure to pay overtime compensation to these employees was neither reasonable, nor was the decision not to pay overtime made in good faith."




The plaintiff and all those who are similarly situated are entitled to overtime wages under the FLSA in an amount equal to one and one-half times their rate of pay, plus liquidated damages, attorney’s fees and costs, according to the suit.




Cormier is seeking class certification and compensatory damages with pre- and post-judgment interest. He is being represented by Michael A. Josephson, Andrew Dunlap and Lindsay R. Itkin of Fibich, Leebron, Copeland, Briggs & Josephson; and Richard J. Burch of Bruckner Burch PLLC.




U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas case number: 4:14-cv-03127




From Legal Newsline: Kyla Asbury can be reached at classactions@legalnewsline.com.


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