The Dallas Hospitality Employment Lawyer Blog

What happens when an employer fails to keep accurate or adequate records of all time worked by an employee? Seventy-five years ago, the United States Supreme Court, in Anderson v. Mt. Clemens Pottery Co ., 328 U.S. 680, 687 (1946), superseded by statute on other grounds , 29 U.S.C. § 254(a), created a burden-shifting framework for FLSA claims where an employer fails to maintain proper records.  More specifically, in those cases, a plaintiff need only show by "just and reasonable inference" that she was an employee, worked the hours, and wasn't paid."  Id .   On February 9, 2021, the Fifth Circuit released its opinion in United States Department of Labor v. Five Star Automatic Fire Protection, L.L.C ., No. 19-51119, applying this framework and affirming a bench trial award of nearly $250,000 in damages, including liquidated damages, to employees of a fire-sprinkler installation and service company who claimed they were not compensated for pre- and post-shift work incl...

In a case of first impression, a federal judge in Massachusetts recently found that the wearing of Black Lives Matter (BLM) masks by employees at work was not protected activity under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (Title VII).   In Frith v. Whole Foods Mkt., Inc. , Civil Action No. 20-cv-11358-ADB (D. Mass. Feb. 5, 2021), current and former employees of Whole Foods, which has publicly supported the BLM Movement, sued their employer claiming they were discriminated and retaliated against in violation of Title VII when Whole Foods disciplined them for wearing BLM masks in violation of its dress code policy that prohibited employees from wearing clothing with visible slogans, messaging, and/or advertising that was not Whole-Foods-related.     The plaintiffs, who are from a variety of racial backgrounds, claimed that wearing BLM attire was a demand for better treatment of Black employees and that they continued to wear the BLM masks for the a...