Petco Faces Major Unpaid Overtime Class Action Lawsuit

Petco Animal Supplies was recently hit with a proposed unpaid overtime class action lawsuit from a former Texas employee.

He and other past and current Petco employees claim that they were denied overtime pay and compensation for off the clock work, directly violating the Fair Labor Standards Act and state labor laws.

Plaintiff Rodney Ramos had been a former inventory supervisor at a Texas Petco for three years. He claims in his unpaid overtime class action lawsuit that throughout his time of employment, Petco had “willfully and intentionally” denied their employees full compensation for unpaid overtime and off the clock work they were required to do without being clocked in.

More specifically, Ramos claims that employees and supervisors who worked on an hourly basis were directed by upper management to clock out every day for a 30 minute lunch break they were often required to work through.

Employees also found themselves working off the clock due to their workload. Petco responded to these complaints by stating that employees needed to “do what needs to be done,” but continued to deny the overtime pay.

Overview of Petco Unpaid Overtime Allegations

According to the unpaid overtime class action lawsuit, Ramos continued to tell upper management that he was forced to work off the clock in order to complete his occupational duties.

In 2013, Petco had informed him that the company had conducted a “thorough investigation” into his allegations but found no evidence to support his claims of unpaid overtime or uncompensated meal breaks. However, the company did offer Ramos one and half hour’s wage in an attempt to resolve the matter.

As he continued his employment with Petco, Ramos became an acting general store manager that resulted in him working an additional 20 hours off the clock in a week.

According to the Petco class action lawsuit, his role had also caused him to adjust some employee’s time cards so they could not go over 40 hours per week to prevent employees from being eligible for overtime pay.

Ramos also complains that he was fired in retaliation for the complaints of unpaid overtime and needing time off for cancer treatment. When he returned to work in late 2014, nine days after undergoing surgery, Ramos had to take an additional 10 days off for radiation treatment.

He was fired by Petco two months later for “filling out time cards incorrectly for himself and for a subordinate employee” when he was acting as store manager.

The unpaid overtime class action lawsuit notes that his termination came just short of his three year anniversary working for the company, which would have given him an automatic raise, a bonus, and paid time off.

Rodney is seeking an unspecified amount in monetary damages for the unpaid overtime, and he wants Petco to face charges for allegedly violating the Texas Labor Code and the FLSA.

This unpaid overtime class action lawsuit is similar to another class complaint filed in New York by Petco groomers. Their claim states that the company allegedly told them to pay for their own tools, with the groomers also experiencing unpaid overtime.

In September 2015, Petco agreed to pay 11,000 California Petco groomers $8 million to settle the claims.

This Unpaid Overtime Class Action Lawsuit is Rodney Ramos v. Petco Animal Supplies Inc., Case No. 4:16-cv-00767, in the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Texas.

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