NEW HAVEN, CT — A federal jury in Connecticut recently handed down a verdict siding with over 1,000 current and former workers who filed an unpaid overtime lawsuit against their employer, arguing the company intentionally violated state and national wage laws governing overtime. The claim against Computer Sciences Corp, now doing business as DXC Technology, argued that the defendant intentionally misclassified its workers as overtime exempt and forced employees to stay on call 24-hours per day for one week every two months without additional pay.
According to the class action overtime lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in the District of Connecticut, employees working as “systems administrators” and other IT professionals were wrongfully denied overtime wages for the hours they spent on-call as tech support. The on-call workers were expected to be able to log into their computers within 15 minutes of receiving a support call from customers, meaning they were basically working during the entire week.
Computer Sciences Corp claimed that these workers were “professionals” or “associate professionals” and therefore exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which sets national minimum wage and overtime pay rates for most workers across the country. Under the FLSA, certain classes of workers may be overtime exempt and paid a flat salary but are expected to perform certain duties while on the job and cannot have these classifications in title only.
The plaintiffs, on the other hand, argued that because they did not make policy, design systems, or do any programming, they were not overtime exempt and instead should earn and hourly wage and be eligible for overtime pay. The FLSA requires employers to pay workers one and a half times the individual’s average hourly rate of pay, including bonuses and other wages, when the employee works more than 40 hours in a week.
While the jury has yet to decide on monetary damages, the amount for which the defendant could be liable may be substantial since it will be on the hook for up to three years of back pay for its willful violations. Had the jury determined the defendants had not wilfully violated the law, individual plaintiffs may only have been able to recover a maximum of two years of unpaid wages.
IT Worker Unpaid Overtime Lawsuit
Call (855) 754-2795 or complete the Free Unpaid Overtime Case Review form on the top right of this page if you feel that your wage rights are being violated under the FLSA. Our top-rated team of unpaid wage lawyers will evaluate your situation to determine your best course of action to help you seek justice.
Our office will also determine if it is in your best interest to file a lawsuit against your employer. Because strict time limitations apply for filing these types of claims, we advise you contact our experienced unpaid overtime wage attorneys at your earliest convenience and preserve your legal rights.