Avis Unpaid Overtime Class Action Lawsuit Settles

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A settlement agreement was reached in an unpaid overtime class action lawsuit filed by shift managers against Avis Budget Group. The settlement amount in the unpaid overtime class action lawsuit was not disclosed by either party.

The original wage and hour lawsuit was filed by Bernar Espanol in April 2010 in a Florida federal court. Espanol filed the rental car employee lawsuit on behalf of himself and other shift manager Class Members employed by Avis Budget Car Rental. He claimed the car rental company had misclassified shift managers, including himself, as exempt from Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which establishes overtime pay requirements. A year later, the definition of the Class Members involved in this unpaid overtime lawsuit expanded to include all current and former Avis employees who had not been compensated for overtime work.

According to court reports, Avis fought against the certification of the class of Avis workers, claiming that they did not have enough common job duties or responsibilities to have the allegations of these employees joined together in one wage and hour lawsuit. Avis moved to have the class decertified and evaluate each plaintiff’s claim in separate cases. However, Judge Mary Scriven determined that there was enough evidence to certify the commonalities in job duties and requirements between Class Members to certify the class and continue with the class action lawsuit.

The Avis/Budget Unpaid Overtime Class Action Lawsuit is Bernar Espanol v. Avis Budget Car Rental LLC, et al., Case No. 10-cv-00944, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

Car Rental Company Unpaid Overtime Litigation

The car rental business has had a history of issues regarding unpaid overtime. Other car rental companies named in wage and hour lawsuits include:

• Alamo
• Budget
• Enterprise Rent-A-Car
• Fox Rent-A-Car
• Midway Car Rental
• National Car Rental
• Payless Car Rental
• Thrifty Car Rental

FLSA Wage and Hour Standards

The FLSA was established with the goal to protect worker’s rights and ensure fair compensation for time worked. According to the FLSA, a worker cannot be paid less than the federal minimum wage,  currently $7.25 for each hour worked. If someone works more than 40 hours a week, then FLSA rules mandate that the employee be paid one and a half times their hourly wage for the additional hours.

FLSA rules do not only apply to employees paid by the hour. If a salaried employee’s total pay for the year is divided by the total number of hours worked in that time period, at a minimum it should at equal the minimum wage. Similarly, employees paid based on commission can calculate if they are being paid a fair wage if they take their total pay, divide it by the hours, which should also ideally average to a minimum hourly wage.

Join a Free Unpaid Overtime Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you were forced to work off the clock or without overtime pay in California within the past 2 to 3 years, you have rights – and you don’t have to take on the company alone. Learn more and obtain a free evaluation of your case to see if you’re eligible for back pay and other compensation at the Unpaid Overtime Lawsuit: Wage & Hour, Overtime Pay Class Action Lawsuit Investigation.