COLUMBUS, OH — A group of assistant managers working for Ohio-area Panera Bread locations recently filed an unpaid overtime lawsuit in federal court accusing the franchise owners of failing to pay them and other assistant managers all their due wages for hours worked. The lawsuit claims Covelli Enterprises improperly classified assistant managers as overtime-exempt workers and illegally denied the group overtime pay for their time spent on the job above the national overtime threshold.
According to the class action overtime pay lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Covelli Enterprises paid their assistant managers a flat, weekly salary no matter how many hours the employees put in. The plaintiffs assert that despite their titles and salary pay, they performed essentially the same functions as hourly, non-exempt workers who are eligible for one and a half times their average hourly rate of pay when working more than 40 hours per week.
While the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which sets national standards for minimum wage and other labor laws, does allow certain classes of employees to be paid a flat salary no matter how many hours worked, these workers must perform certain duties. Managers, for instance, must be engaged in duties essential to the day-to-day operations of the company including supervising workers, hiring and firing employees, setting pay rates, creating work schedules, and disciplining subordinates. Unfortunately, many companies attempt to take advantage of these exemptions and give workers the title of manager in name only and ask them to perform many of the same duties as hourly workers.
The lead plaintiff hopes to gain class action certification for the lawsuit to allow other similarly situated assistant managers working for Panera Bread franchises across the country owned by Covelli Enterprise. According to reports, Covelli Enterprises owns over 300-Panera Bread locations across Ohio, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina. Ohio workers could be entitled to up to two years of back pay while those in other states may be entitled to up to three years.
Assistant Manager Unpaid Overtime Lawsuit
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