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Plaintiffs File Two Class Actions Against U.S. Remodelers, Inc. Alleging Violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act and State Laws on Behalf of All of Its Installer Employees
26 Feb, 2009 WorkersCompensation.com
PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 25 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Two separate class action lawsuits have been filed on behalf of employees of U.S. Remodelers, Inc. who install kitchen cabinets that are purchased in Home Depots across the country. The first lawsuit, Ozga v. U.S. Remodelers, Inc., was filed on Tuesday, February 17, 2009 in the Superior Court of California, Alameda County, on behalf of all installer employees of U.S. Remodelers, Inc. who worked in California during the past four years. The lawsuit alleges that U.S. Remodelers, Inc., who also does business in California as U.S. Home Services, violated California state wage and hour laws requiring employees to be paid for all of their time spent working, and further alleges that U.S. Remodelers maintains policies: 1) of requiring its employee installers to attend weekly meetings, load equipment and materials, and travel to and from work sites to the warehouse without being compensated for these activities; and 2) of not providing meal and rest breaks to its employee installers.
The second lawsuit, Coluccio v. U.S. Remodelers, Inc., which contains similar allegations, was filed on Tuesday, February 24, 2009 in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, in Camden, New Jersey, and alleges on behalf of installer employees of U.S. Remodelers, Inc. in every state except California that U.S. Remodelers violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act by requiring its installer employees to routinely work more than 40 hours per week without receiving the legally mandated overtime pay. This lawsuit also alleges class action claims under the New Jersey Wage and Hour Law on behalf of all installer employees who worked in New Jersey.
"U.S. Remodelers, Inc. is engaging in blatant violations of the overtime laws by requiring its installers to spend numerous hours working without being paid. This practice must stop, and U.S. Remodelers, Inc. should be held accountable for this illegal conduct," said Carolyn Cottrell of Schneider Wallace Cottrell Brayton Konecky LLP, one of the attorneys for the plaintiffs in both cases. Another attorney for the plaintiffs in both cases, Shanon Carson of Berger & Montague, P.C., states, "The employer/employee relationship is a highly one-sided relationship, with companies too often taking advantage of its workers by failing to pay them the compensation and overtime they are owed under the law. It is important for courageous workers to stand up for their rights, and the rights of their co-workers, which is exactly what is going on here."
All current and former installer employees of U.S. Remodelers, Inc. and U.S. Home Services who worked in California during the past four years are covered by the California case. All current and former installer employees of U.S. Remodelers in all states other than California are covered by the second case filed in federal court in New Jersey. Current and former employees of U.S. Remodelers can obtain additional information by calling Shanon Carson at (215) 875-4656 or Carolyn Cottrell at (415) 421-7100, or by email at scarson@bm.net.
These cases are being prosecuted by Berger & Montague, P.C., based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Schneider Wallace Cottrell Brayton Konecky LLP, based in San Francisco, California. An additional law firm, The Winebrake Law Firm, LLC, is also representing the workers in the case filed in New Jersey.
The law firm of Berger & Montague, P.C. consists of over 60 attorneys who represent plaintiffs in complex litigation. The firm's Employment Law Group has extensive experience in representing employees in class and collective action litigation, and the firm has played lead roles in major cases for almost 40 years resulting in recoveries of billions of dollars for its clients and the classes they represent. On the Web: www.bergermontague.com. Electronic copies of the complaints in both cases are available on Berger & Montague P.C.'s website.
Schneider Wallace Cottrell Brayton Konecky LLP is a dedicated group of California trial lawyers committed to continuing the work of the civil rights movement through individual and class action litigation. For 15 years, the firm's attorneys have handled individual and class action lawsuits involving disability rights, employment discrimination, wage and hour violations, and consumer rights. On the Web: www.schneiderwallace.com.
SOURCE Berger & Montague, P.C.
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