Wells Fargo Class Awarded $97M for California Rest Break Law Claims

In a recent California rest break law class action lawsuit, a Class of Wells Fargo employees were awarded almost $100 million for missed meal and rest breaks and other compensation.

Wells Fargo, in this recent California rest break law class action lawsuit, claimed that their employees, a Class of California-based Wells Fargo & Co. home mortgage consultants, didn’t deserve the $97 million California rest break law award that they received.

This group of Wells Fargo & Co. home mortgage consultants, led by lead plaintiffs Patricia B. and Jacqueline I., claim that Wells Fargo did not pay them properly for time they worked. Allegedly, they were not paid fairly for meal and rest breaks. Additionally, they claimed Wells Fargo failed to pay them for time spent attending different events including galas and open houses.

This, the home mortgage consultants claim, violates both federal law and California rest break law.

The main disagreement between Wells Fargo and the Class in this California rest break law class action lawsuit lies within what the “regular rate of compensation” actually applies to. Wells Fargo claims that this “regular rate of compensation” only applies to hourly wages. Class Members claim that this rate should apply to all compensation earned including commission and overtime, both of which were regularly included in the workers’ compensation.

U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson said that the home mortgage consultants’ “normal compensation was not comprised solely or even primarily of pay calculated at an hourly rate. By definition, it included hourly pay, incentive pay, and overtime premiums, and the hourly pay was stated to be only an advance on commissions.”

Wells Fargo asked that the award in this California rest break law class action lawsuit be set at about $24 million. This calculation would be based on the employees’ hourly rate only. However, the employees, who made up a Class of around 4,500 California Wells Fargo home mortgage consultants, were awarded $97 million instead.

Wells Fargo plans to appeal this award because “the court’s decision reflects a misunderstanding of home mortgage consultants’ compensation plan and misapplies relevant state law,” Law360 reports.

Last year, Judge Anderson certified a class of California Wells Fargo nonexempt employees including home mortgage consultants, junior home mortgage consultants, private mortgage bankers or junior private mortgage bankers who worked for Wells Fargo from March 17, 2013, to Aug. 1, 2017.

The California Rest Break Law Class Action Lawsuit is Case No. 2:17-cv-04344, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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