San Francisco Superior Court to Weigh in on Class Action for Failure to Pay Overtime Wages to Personal Trainers

Heather Miller, a California resident, filed a class action lawsuit in November 2012 on behalf current and previous personal trainers employed by Western Athletic Clubs, LLC and Pacific Sports Resort, Inc.  The complaint alleges that the defendants violated California’s Unfair Competition Law, failed to pay overtime, failed to provide itemized wage statements, and failed to pay wages when due in violation of California labor laws.

Pursuant to the California Labor Code, hourly employees must be paid overtime at “one and one-half times the regular rate of pay.”  Heather Miller was paid an hourly wage in addition to commissions and bonuses based on the number of training sessions she was able to complete each pay period.  The complaint alleges that defendants systematically underpaid overtime wages to Miller and the California class by failing to include bonus compensation in the trainers’ “regular rate of pay.”  Miller has also alleged that the defendants required trainers to work back-to-back sessions, preventing them from taking 30-minute uninterrupted meal breaks as required by California law.

The class includes all persons currently or formerly employed by the defendants as personal trainers in California at any time between November 2008 and the present.  Miller seeks an injunction enjoining such conduct by the defendants in the future as well as unpaid compensation and restitution.

The court will determine whether the employees’ “regular rate of pay” includes bonus pay for purposes of calculating overtime.

Has your employer failed to pay you overtime pay for all hours worked?  If so, call Khorrami, LLP for a confidential consultation.