Santa Clara, CA: An
unpaid wage and hour complaint has been brought by California-based workers at Converse Inc. Filed in 2015 by Eric Chavez, the complaint sought to establish a class of "hundreds, if not thousands" of nonexempt employees who worked at Converse retail stores since 2011 and were subject to off-the-clock security checks at the end of their shifts. In an amended complaint, the plaintiffs also alleged that Converse's mandatory security policy violated California labor laws.
California labor law requires hourly employees be paid for all time spent in work related duties, but when it comes to issues such as donning and doffing and logging into and out of computer systems, the rules are not always clear. California labor lawsuits have been filed against employers alleging employees are required to spend unpaid time putting on and taking off protective gear or specialized uniforms or otherwise carrying out activities that are required for their jobs. In some cases, the courts have found that employees should be compensated for this time.
In the Converse complaint, the plaintiffs allege that the Nike subsidiairy failed to pay for the time workers spent undergoing mandatory security checks and failed to give proper meal breaks. The judge who certified the class action stated that the claim made by named plaintiff Eric Chavez, applied to all class members, as they were required to undergo off-the-clock bag checks indicated there are questions of law common to all class members.
The Converse class action was certified with a class of 1,500 current and past employees who are or were non-exempt from overtime pay by Converse. They worked in Converse retail in California from July 2011 to the present.
