$21M Unpaid Wages Class Action Settlement to Benefit California Security Guards

An unpaid wages class action settlement of $21 million has been reached after eight years in California courts.

A certified Class of security guards employed by U.S. Security Associates Inc. sought approval to settle over allegations the workers were victims of several labor statute violations.

Lead plaintiff Muhammed Abdullah filed the wage and hour lawsuit in January 2009. Among his allegations against defendant U.S. Security Associates, Abdullah claimed:

• Security guards were deprived of meal and rest breaks.
• Security guards were required to purchase certain items.
• Security guards were not paid for missed vacation time.
• Terminated security guards were not paid upon their termination.

Unpaid Wages Class Action Settlement Took Years

Even though a district court certified the class in 2011, U.S. Security Associates appealed the ruling to the Ninth Circuit Court, which upheld the certification status in September 2013. The Ninth Circuit court also denied U.S. Security’s request for an en banc rehearing later in 2013.

When U.S. Security Associates reached out to the U.S. Supreme Court by filling a petition for writ of certiorari, the Supreme Court declined to take on the case. (A writ of certiorari orders a lower court to share its record of a certain case with the higher court for review when the appellate court accepts the invitation to review the case.)

In the meantime, two other putative class action lawsuits against the company were filed by other security guards. Jean-Leal Cardenas filed suit against U.S. Security Associates in May 2013, and Robert Stone filed suit against the company in January 2015.

The lawsuits by Cardenas and Stone cited not only labor statute violations that echoed Abdullah’s allegations, but also included claims made under the California Private Attorneys General Act. Their claims were wrapped into Abdullah’s original lawsuit by April 2015.

The unpaid wages class action settlement was reached in December 2016, but only made public in June. The opt-out, non-reversionary terms effectively resolve all of the claims made regarding both federal and state labor law violations.

The unpaid wages class action settlement allows Class Members to obtain a payment based upon the number of shifts they worked. The approximately 17,000 Class Members would not need to complete claim forms in order to receive payment. Each will receive an average of $1,235.

Class attorneys say they spent more than 7,000 hours on the case representing the security guards during the past eight years. The attorneys can request a maximum of 33 percent of settlement fund as payment for their work.

According to the company’s website, U.S. Security Associates employs more than 50,000 security guards, operates 160 branch offices, and holds a presence in 120 countries. The company is based out of Roswell, Ga.

The Unpaid Wages Class Action Settlement Case is Muhammed Abdullah et al. v. U.S. Security Associates, Case No. 2:09-cv-09554 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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