Travel Time Compensation Lawsuit Settled for $333,000

A group of cell tower service workers have settled with their employer in a travel time compensation overtime lawsuit to resolve allegations that the employees were not paid properly for overtime spent driving to and from their jobs.

Recently, a federal judge in Illinois gave his approval to a $333,000 travel time compensation settlement between Heights Tower Service Inc. and about 60 of its employees. The workers claim, according to Law360, that Heights Tower failed to pay them proper overtime for the time they spent driving between their jobs.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey Gilbert called this travel time compensation settlement a “very good settlement” in relation to this “hard fought case,” Law360 reports. Judge Gilbert believes that this result is favorable because it will compensate the 60 employees for the time they allege they spent driving to and from their jobs and for which they were not paid.

He said that the settlement “diverts any risk and uncertainty of litigation to certain result for the class,” and that the class gets the “dollars now rather than dollars later, although they may not have gotten the dollars later either.”

The first installment of Heights Tower Service’s settlement is supposed to be paid within two weeks of the order. This payment will compensate workers who’s claims were under $500. The second part of the settlement will be paid within a year.

In this 2014 travel time compensation lawsuit, class members allege that even while they were paid for overtime, the overtime did not include time spent driving to and from their jobs. The travel time compensation lawsuit claims that this violates both Illinois’ Minimum Wage Law, as well as the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.

Last August, Judge Gilbert denied motions for summary judgments on both sides, but commended both sides for having recently reached this travel time compensation settlement agreement.

One of the attorneys for the plaintiffs told Law360 that he was really happy about the travel time compensation settlement.

Travel Time Compensation Under Federal Law

According to the Department of Labor, “time spent traveling during normal work hours is considered compensable work time.” However, “time spent in home-to-work travel by an employee in an employer-provided vehicle, or in activities performed by an employee that are incidental to the use of the vehicle for commuting, generally is not ‘hours worked’ and, therefore, does not have to be paid.”

In the case of the Heights Tower Service workers, the time in question was during work hours and spent driving to and from their service jobs.

Federal law says that time over 40 hours per week is considered “overtime” and for non-exempt employees, these hours should be compensated at one and one half times the normal rate of pay.

Companies who fail to comply with federal law in these matters can risk lawsuits and fines for mistreating their employees under the law.

This Travel Time Compensation Lawsuit is Case No. 1:14-cv-06546, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

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