The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to consider whether the anti-retaliation
provision of the Fair Labor Standards Act, which prohibits discrimination
against an employee who "filed a complaint," covers an employee who orally
complained to supervisors that the location of time clocks prevented employees
from being paid for time spent donning and doffing required protective gear.
Plaintiff, who was fired by Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp. for
violating time-clock procedures, is asking the justices to overturn the Seventh
Circuit's June 2009 decision that he did not engage in protected activity under
the FLSA because he did not complain in writing. The statute's use of the
language "filed" shows that Congress intended employees to submit written wage
and hour complaints to be shielded from retaliation, the court said.
The Seventh Circuit denied Plaintiff's request for rehearing
en banc. The three dissenting judges asserted that the interpretation that the
FLSA's anti-retaliation provision does not cover oral complaints is "unique
among the circuits" and conflicts with the Labor Department's position.
Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp., U.S., No. 09-834, cert.
granted 3/22/10
