Wage and Hour Claims Against Marriott Vacations May Settle for $1.2 Million

Plaintiffs with wage and hour claims against Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation have asked U.S. District Judge James Selna to grant final approval of a $1.2 million settlement.

The plaintiffs allege that Marriott failed to pay proper wages and was in violation of other provisions of the California Labor Code. If approved, 4,000 Class Members who worked for the defendant between Sept. 22 and Oct. 25, 2013 would receive an average of $200 each.

Basis of the Wage and Hour Claims

The original lawsuit was filed in Orange County Superior Court in 2017 before it was transferred to a federal court in April of the following year. According to a story originally published in Employer Right Insight, lead plaintiff Rogelio A. was employed at Marriott’s Newport Coast Villas in Southern California from 2011 until the end of 2015. His duties consisted of providing assistance and support for the housekeeping staff in preparing rooms for new guests.

Rogelio claims that Marriott required rooms to be cleaned and ready for incoming guests within a regular eight hour shift. However, he says that the facility was understaffed; as a result, he and his fellow employees were obliged to work hurriedly, foregoing breaks and even continuing work after their shifts had ended. According to Rogelio’s complaint, he and other employees regularly worked through their rest breaks and meal periods, and were “required to punch out and return to work…[after] the eighth hour.”

At the same time, Rogelio claims that Marriott did not pay them state-mandated overtime for the additional hours required to complete their tasks. His complaint states that “employees were intimidated by management and coerced into clocking out and continuing work, in order to finish their cleaning tasks for the day.” After he was terminated, the plaintiff says, he was not paid his due wages and was not provided with accurate wage statements.

California Labor Laws

Under the California Labor Code, all non-exempt employees must be given no fewer than two duty-free rest breaks over the course of an eight hour shift in addition to a 30-minute, uninterrupted meal period. Additionally, non-exempt employees are legally entitled to 150 percent of their normal hourly wage for all hours worked beyond eight hours in a single shift or 40 hours in a week.

Employers are also required to pay employees in a “timely manner” upon separation, and include detailed, accurate statements. Companies that violate provisions of California’s Labor Code can face stiff fines as well as civil liability.

The vast majority of the plaintiffs have agreed to participate in the settlement without objections; only one percent of the class has opted out. They note that Marriott’s written policies are “largely compliant” with California labor regulations, and when weighed against the underlying claims, there was a “high risk” that extended litigation might go against them.

Neither the defendant nor defense counsel has commented on the settlement.

The present Wage and Hour Claims Class Action Lawsuit is Case No. 8:18-cv-00685, in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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