In July of 2009, NFFE Local 2189, representing employees at Red River Army Depot, filed a grievance against the Army on behalf of all bargaining unit employees. The Grievance alleged violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and Title V (FEPA), among other violations.
The Law Offices of Snider and Associates, as the legal representatives for the Union, are working hard for the bargaining unit employees to ensure that their rights under federal law are upheld. As part of the process, we have been contacting RRAD employees about their job duties and how much unpaid overtime they have worked.
After agreeing to settle a portion of the Union’s grievance, specifically certain positions that would be switched to FLSA Nonexempt, the Agency disputed that the Union’s Grievance was viable. Arbitrator William Dealy was selected, and in November of 2014, ruled in the Union’s favor that the Grievance could go forward. Arbitration hearings began in September of 2015, and concluded in May of 2017, as the Agency attempted to prove that it properly designated certain employees as FLSA exempt. Abitrator Dealy will issue his ruling in the coming months.
The next stage of the case is to recover damages for the Union on behalf of bargaining unit employees. Employees covered by the FLSA may be entitled to compensation for suffered or permitted overtime, and employees covered by FEPA may be entitled to pay for work that was ordered or induced to be performed but not paid properly. Additionally, there are damages which flow from the Agency’s failure to properly designate certain employees as FLSA non-exempt. Arbitration hearings will begin on these issues later in 2018.
If you are or were in the NFFE Local 2189 bargaining unit at RRAD, please contact us if you believe you have information to share about overtime for which you did not receive proper compensation.
All bargaining unit employees, whether or not they are members of the union, and regardless of position or pay grade, are covered by this grievance and could potentially benefit from a successful result.