The Law Firm Butsch Simeri Fields LLC Announces Conditional Class Certification in Overtime Lawsuit Against Dealer Warranty Services

ST. LOUIS--A wage-and-hour lawsuit claiming that telephone-sales representatives employed by St. Charles-based Dealer Warranty Services were forced to work more than 40 hours a week without overtime pay has been conditionally certified as a class action.

“Dealer Warranty Services required its employees to work more than 40 hours per week, but did not compensate them for their overtime work. This violates the FLSA”

On Jan. 15, U.S. Magistrate Judge David D. Noce entered the conditional certification order in Littlefield v. Dealer Warranty Services, LLC, case no. 4:09 CV 1000.

From its call center in St. Charles County, Dealer Warranty Services sells automobile warranties, also known as vehicle service contracts, by telephone to customers throughout the United States and Puerto Rico. The suit says that at any given time, between 40 and 50 telephone-sales representatives worked for the company. The suit alleges that the company willfully violated the Fair Labor Standard Act by regularly requiring these representatives to work more than 40 hours per week, but not paying them time-and-one-half for their overtime work.

The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri on June 26 by 10 former employees, seeks to recover two times the amount of unpaid overtime compensation. The suit also seeks punitive damages and prejudgment interest, as well as attorney fees and expenses.

The conditional class-certification order allows current and former employees employed by Dealer Warranty Services since August 20, 2006 to join the lawsuit as plaintiffs.

St. Louis-based lawyers David T. Butsch and James J. Simeri of Butsch Simeri Fields represent the plaintiffs.

“Dealer Warranty Services required its employees to work more than 40 hours per week, but did not compensate them for their overtime work. This violates the FLSA,” says Butsch. “The Fair Labor Standards Act is an important law that has been ignored in this industry. We are pleased that conditional class certification has been granted in this case.”

Located in the St. Louis suburb of Clayton, Butsch Simeri Fields handles business litigation, as well as consumer-class action, personal injury and mass-tort cases. For more information, contact David T. Butsch at 314-863-5700 or e-mail butsch@bsflawfirm.com.