LOS ANGELES – -A former salesman for Silicon Valley startup Zenefits recently filed an unpaid overtime lawsuit in Arizona federal District Court alleging the defendant owes him and others for back wages and other damages. At least six other individuals have joined the suit and others could potentially join if the court agrees to grant the claim collective action status, possibly leading to a huge payout should the plaintiffs be successful.
The lead plaintiff alleges that he and others were misclassified as overtime exempt employees when in fact they did not meet the qualifications under the Fair Labor Standard Act (FLSA) for such a designation. The suit goes on to claim the defendant had a policy of requiring its sales force to work more than 40 hours per week but did not compensate the workers with one and a half times their regular hourly wage.
Furthermore, the plaintiff claims the defendant required sales staff to participate in sales meetings three times per week at 7 a.m. for which they were never compensated. According to reports, the staff was responsible for cold-calling potential clients and would work well above the 40-hour per week overtime threshold to meet sales goals.
The defendant reportedly attempted to ward off potential overtime lawsuits earlier this year when it laid off hundreds of workers in a company-wide restructuring, offering laid-off workers thousands of dollars in severance and benefits. The terms of the severance packages required individuals sign a waiver releasing Zenefits from any future legal claims against the company.
Employers often use these types of waivers to incentivize workers not to exercise their legal rights or sign them away altogether in order to avoid costly litigation and preserve ill gotten gains by keeping payroll down. However, many of these waivers are not 100% enforceable under certain state and federal laws and plaintiffs may still be able to bring legal claims against their employer to recover all of their hard earned wages.
Sales Staff Unpaid Overtime Lawsuits
Call (855)754-2795 or complete the Free Unpaid Overtime Case Review form on the top right of this page if you believe 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.