Smith Barney’s brokerage
unit has announced that it will pay $98 million to settle claims that it
improperly classified thousands of brokers as exempt administrators under the
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The settlement, which covers up to 20,000
brokers in
York
may be the financial industry’s largest ever in an overtime suit. The brokerage
argued that the workers were properly classified as exempt because their draw
on commission constituted a salary, as required by the FLSA, but the workers
disagreed.
This is the latest in a
string of hefty overtime lawsuit settlements by financial industry employers.
For example, UBS, based in Switzerland, recently agreed to pay $89 million to
settle overtime claims to thousands of its employees in the United States, and
Morgan Stanley announced that it would pay $42.5 million to resolve a suit
charging that it denied overtime to about 5,000 financial advisors in California.
The HR Management & Compliance Report: How To Comply with California Wage & Hour Law, explains everything you need to know to stay in compliance with the state’s complex and ever-changing rules, laws, and regulations in this area. Coverage on bonuses, meal and rest breaks, overtime, alternative workweeks, final paychecks, and more.