An overtime law firm represents those individuals who have been denied “fair pay” as defined by federal and state wage and hour laws. Wage and hour laws are complicated and fluctuate from state to state which is one reason many employers are not paying their employees appropriately.

* Unpaid Overtime
* Unpaid Wages and Salaries
* Minimum Wage Violations
* Misclassifications of Executive, Professional, Administrative and Managerial Employees
* Salaried Workers who should get paid Overtime
* Misclassifications as Exempt from Overtime
* Improper Wage Deductions
* “Off-the-Clock” Work
* Improper Overtime Calculations

But the fact of the matter is that the cost of taking the case to court can often cost far more than the compensation that might be awarded. So for the following reasons, it has become commonplace for class action wage and hour claims are being filed against employers in many industries.

• The costs of litigation may not be worth a single worker filing suit
• Overtime law suits are typically filed as class action lawsuits or as collective action lawsuits
• Before the class action, employers were violating overtime laws with no punishment
• Class action suits level the playing field between workers and their employer
• Law firms consider several factors for a legitimate class action suit

Wage and hour or overtime lawsuits typically are filed as class or collective action suits because it rarely makes economic sense for a single worker to file this type of suit – i.e. the potential recovery is too nominal compared to the cost and risks of litigation. For that reason, large companies have been getting away with violating wage and hour laws with zero consequences. This is why the majority of wage and hour lawsuits are filed in class action form by an overtime law firm.

A class action or collective action lawsuit allows hundreds and thousands of employees to sue an offending employer as part of a single overtime lawsuit. The class action wage and hour suit has allowed workers to challenge illegal wage payment practices of their employers on an equal playing field. Because there is strength in numbers, overtime class actions have awarded hundreds of thousands of workers millions of dollars, which they otherwise would never have been able to retrieve on their own.

In order for an overtime law firm to bring forth a class action, there are several factors that have to be considered:

* Are there enough people affected by an overtime violation to warrant a class action?
* Do those affected people share common legal issues?
* Are the claims of the person/persons bringing suit representative of the entire class?
* Will the law firm bringing the case be willing and able to represent the interests of the entire class?

If the answer is “yes” to all four questions, then the claim in question has all the potential makings of a class action lawsuit.

If you feel you have a potential wage and hour class action suit, or even if you have a question as to whether or not you have been treated fairly according to your states overtime laws, contact experienced overtime attorneys from an overtime law firm such as the Lore Law Firm. They will answer any questions you may have and advise you on what your rights are as an employee under FLSA and state wage and hour law. If you fill out our convenient online Case Evaluation Form, they will help you decide if you have a viable case.

Michael Lore is the founder of The Lore Law Firm. For over 25 years, his law practice and experience extend from representing individuals in all aspects of labor & employment law, with a concentration in class and collective actions seeking to recover unpaid back overtime wages, to matters involving executive severance negotiations, non-compete provisions and serious personal injury (work and non-work related). He has handled matters both in the state and federal courts nationwide as well as via related administrative agencies. If you have any questions about this article, you can contact Michael by using our chat functionality.