July 30, 2008

New York City Bakery Faces Overtime Pay Lawsuit

by Salvatore Gangemi of Murtha Cullina LLP

This week, employees of “Cake Man,” a celebrity baker in Brooklyn, filed an overtime pay lawsuit in United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The lawsuit claims that 15 employees are owed at least a half million dollars in overtime pay over a six year period.
The obligation to pay overtime under New York law and the federal Fair Labor Standards Act is absolute. An employer does not satisfy its obligation to pay time and a half for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek by rewarding employees with bonuses. Yet, that appears to be precisely what many employers, particularly smaller ones, do.

For more information concerning overtime pay, visit the United States Department of Labor or the New York State Department of Labor.

Salvatore G. Gangemi

Salvatore G. Gangemi is a Partner in the Litigation Department of Murtha Cullina and a member of the Labor and Employment Practice Group. Sal advises clients with respect to state, federal and local employment laws, including the Fair Labor Standards Act, Title VII, Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, Family Medical Leave Act, and New York State and City employment laws. Sal counsels clients on day-to-day issues involving workplace management and administration, including requests for reasonable accommodation for disabilities, for family and medical leave, and wage and hour issues. Sal frequently lectures on employment law matters, and at continuing legal education seminars. He has written extensively on employment law issues as well as other legal issues affecting individuals and businesses.