California Caregivers File Class Action for Failure to Pay Overtime and Minimum Wage

Sacramento, CA (Law Firm Newswire) September 24, 2014 – California caregivers have filed a class action lawsuit against Kindred Healthcare, Inc. for the company’s failure to pay minimum wage and overtime.

“The charges include rest and meal break violations among a plethora of allegations relating to failure to pay overtime and minimum wage,” noted Deborah Barron, a Sacramento business attorney not involved in the lawsuit. “One plaintiff claims that she was denied overtime, and another suggests that she was not paid her full wages for helping an in-home care client.”

Kindred Healthcare is one of the largest post-acute health services providers in the nation. Kindred has offered no comment except to state that it will defend the matters raised. Kindred employs approximately 63,000 workers in 47 states and shows annual revenues of at least $5 billion.

In California alone, nearly 3.5 million individuals work as caregivers, forming an extremely dynamic workforce and one of the fastest growing sectors in the state. Kindred provides jobs for roughly 300 professional caregivers in Northern California specifically. If the charges have merit, the court case could drastically alter Kindred’s business practices.

To adhere to the law, businesses must pay their workers a fair wage, compensate them in accordance with state labor regulations, ensure that all those who work overtime are paid in full in a timely manner, and designate meal and rest breaks.

Lawsuits of this size tend to take time to wend their way through the courts. The case is worth watching for court solutions for the adherence to and enforcement of the labor code when a mega-employer is involved.  Some skeptics suggest that the bigger the employer and the deeper the pockets, the more difficult it is to get justice. Industry watchers suggest this is the perfect test case to make a point that no one, even a company as large as Kindred, is above the law.

“In California, worker’s rights rule above all. If you have any questions about how you are being treated in your workplace, you can talk to me,” said Barron.

Learn more at http://www.lawbarron.com/