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O’Reilly Auto Enterprises says it shouldn’t have to pay employees for the up-to 15 minutes per day they take before and after work to do COVID-19 and security screenings, and is asking a judge to throw out a class action lawsuit brought against it.
Plaintiff Jeffrey Pipich — a former driver at the auto company — filed a class action lawsuit against O’Reilly Auto Enterprises in a California federal court, arguing the company should be compensating workers for the time they spend getting checked at security.
He is suing under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and seeking to represent a Class of O’Reilly employees who did COVID-19 screenings or security inspections and weren’t paid for it.
However, in a memorandum filed last Thursday, O’Reilly argued the amount of time is so short that it’s inconsequential, and isn’t eligible for compensation because it’s not part of employees’ actual work.
Pipich alleges that every day he and others clocked in, they had to undergo a security check of between three and five minutes prior to the shift. After their shifts, he alleges they had to spend another three to 10 minutes in security again.
O’Reilly says it shouldn’t have to pay for this amount of time.
“Plaintiff’s complaint alleges a total time of only two to five minutes for COVID screening. Courts have found similar wait times for security screenings to be de minimis,” the memorandum argues.
“It does not matter that Plaintiff alleges the time may “have been prolonged in excess of five minutes depending on the number of employees waiting in line” because such time spent waiting “is two steps removed from the productive activity” and not compensable under the FLSA.”
O’Reilly’s memorandum points to a previous Supreme Court ruling that says companies don’t have to pay workers for time spent in security screenings.
In that case — Integrity Staffing Solutions Inc. v. Busk — the court ruled employees didn’t have to be compensated for the checks under the FLSA because they were not integral to the “principal” activities of the warehouse workers.
This is not the first class action lawsuit to be brought around COVID-19 screenings.
In February, Walmart was sued by employees who claim the retail giant made them arrive at work at least 30 minutes early for COVID-19 screenings that they weren’t paid for.
Those plaintiffs allege their employer violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and California law when it implemented a time-consuming screening policy of questions and temperature checks that wasn’t compensated.
Have you been asked to arrive at work early for a security check that you weren’t paid for? Let us know in the comments!
Pipich is represented by Sophia M. Rios, Shanon J. Carson, Camille Fundora Rodriguez and Daniel F. Thornton of Berger Montague PC.
The O’Reilly COVID-19 Security Check Class Action Lawsuit is Jeffrey Pipich v. O’Reilly Auto Enterprises LLC, Case No. 3:21-cv-01120, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.
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