Sobolewski v. Boselli & Sons, LLC
Sobolewski v. Boselli & Sons, LLC
Opinion of the Court
RAYMOND P. MOORE, United States District Judge *1180Plaintiff Thomasz Sobolewski is a former employee who worked at Defendants' McDonald's restaurants in Colorado. Plaintiff seeks, on behalf of himself and as class representative, damages against Defendants for alleged meal and rest period violations. Defendants have filed two motions for partial summary judgment seeking resolution of four issues: (1) whether Colorado's Minimum Wage Order grants Plaintiff a private right of action for violations of its meal period and rest period requirements; (2) whether, based on the undisputed facts, Plaintiff's claim for violation of the Wage Order's meal period requirements fail as a matter of law; (3) whether Plaintiff's breach of contract claim must be dismissed for lack of consideration; and (4) whether the statute of limitations provision contained in the Wage Order applies to Plaintiff's claims for meal period and rest period violations. (ECF Nos. 39 and 83.)
For the reasons stated below, the Court denies in part and grants in part Defendants' first motion for partial summary judgment. (ECF No. 39.) Defendants' second motion for partial summary judgment is denied. (ECF No. 83.)
I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
The following are the undisputed and material facts taken from the parties' statements of undisputed facts and accompanying exhibits.
Defendants are the owners and operators of twelve McDonald's restaurants in Colorado.
Defendants' [First] Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (the "First Motion") seeks dismissal of Plaintiff's third claim under the Wage Order for meal period and rest period violations. (ECF No. 39 at 2.) The underlying facts supporting Plaintiff's third claim are almost entirely undisputed. Defendants had a policy that required its employees to clock in and out of a computer system for 10-minute rest periods and 30-minute meal periods. (ECF No. 49-1, Defs.' SUMF ¶¶ 2-4.) Employees were required to punch in when they arrived for their shift, punch out for their 30-minute unpaid meal periods, and then punch back *1181in to the system when they returned from their 30-minute meal period. (Id. , Defs.' SUMF ¶ 5.) The employees are paid based on the time punches recorded by Defendants' computer system. (Id. , Defs.' SUMF ¶ 6.) The heart of Plaintiff's meal period claim is that Defendants' management was very strict about making sure that employees clocked back into the system no later than 30 minutes after their lunch break started. (Id. , Defs.' SUMF ¶ 8.) As a result, employees "often went to the timeclock to clock back in a few minutes before 30 minutes had passed to make sure [they] clocked in no late[r] than the 30 minute deadline." (Id. , Defs.' SUMF ¶ 9.) Stated differently: "Many employees just waited around the timeclock until exactly 30 minutes had passed so they could clock in exactly on time." (Id. , Defs.' SUMF ¶ 10.) Defendants' First Motion argues that the Wage Order does not provide a private cause of action for Plaintiff's alleged meal period and rest period violations. (See ECF No. 39.) And, even if Plaintiff may maintain a private right of action, no meal period violation has occurred under these undisputed facts. (Id. )
Defendants' Second Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (the "Second Motion") does not rely on any additional facts. (ECF No. 83.) Instead, the Second Motion seeks resolution of two legal questions: (1) whether Plaintiff has stated a valid breach of contract claim; and (2) assuming that Plaintiff can maintain a private action under the Wage Order, whether the statute of limitations provided in Section 15 the Wage Order applies to such a claim. (Id. at 1-2.) Plaintiff opposes the relief sought in both motions.
II. LEGAL STANDARD FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
Summary judgment is appropriate only if there is no genuine dispute of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a) ; Celotex Corp. v. Catrett ,
The Court will consider statements of fact, or rebuttals thereto, which are material and supported by competent evidence. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1)(A), 56(e)(2), 56(e)(3). Summary judgment evidence need not be submitted in a form that would be admissible at trial, but the content or substance of the evidence must be admissible. Johnson v. Weld Cty. ,
III. ANALYSIS
A. Private Right of Action Under the Colorado Minimum Wage Order
Plaintiff alleges violations of the Colorado Minimum Wage Act, C.R.S. § 8-6-101, et seq. , and the Colorado Wage Claim Act, C.R.S. § 8-4-101, et. seq. These two acts are implemented by Colorado Minimum Wage Orders. See, e.g. , Colo. Minimum Wage Order No. 34,
Defendants first contend that "the only circumstance in which a person may assert a private cause of action under the Wage Order is where the 'employee is receiving less than the legal minimum wage.' " (ECF No. 39 at 6.) As Defendants read the regulation, this means that Plaintiff does not have a private right of action for violations of the meal and rest break provisions contained in Sections 7 and 8
Interpretation and application of Colorado's Wage Order is governed by Colorado law. Deherrera v. Decker Truck Line, Inc. ,
*1183To start with, the full text of the private right of action provision states as follows:
An employee receiving less than the legal minimum wage applicable to such employee is entitled to recover in a civil action the unpaid balance of the full amount of such minimum wage, together with reasonable attorney fees and court costs, notwithstanding any agreement to work for a lesser wage, pursuant to C.R.S. § 8-6-118 (2017). Alternatively, an employee may elect to pursue a minimum wage complaint through the division's administrative procedure as described in the Colorado Wage Act, C.R.S. § 8-4-101, et seq. (2017).
Employees shall be entitled to an uninterrupted and 'duty free' meal period of at least a thirty minute duration when the scheduled work shift exceeds five consecutive hours of work. The employees must be completely relieved of all duties and permitted to pursue personal activities to qualify as a non-work, uncompensated period of time. When the nature of the business activity or other circumstances exist that makes an uninterrupted meal period impractical, the employee shall be permitted to consume an 'on-duty' meal while performing duties. Employees shall be permitted to fully consume a meal of choice 'on the job' and be fully compensated for the 'on-duty' meal period without any loss of time or compensation.
First, Plaintiff's claims fall within the plain language of the Wage Order. He claims that he was not paid for meal breaks and rest breaks, but should have been. Had his hours been properly calculated, he would have been entitled to receive minimum wage for the time worked. Stated differently, Plaintiff claims that he is an employee "receiving less than the legal minimum wage applicable to such employee."
*1184Second, Defendants read Section 18 to mean that a private right of action is limited to a scenario where the employer is paying an employee an hourly rate that is less than $10.20 per hour (the minimum wage as of January 1, 2018). In other words, Defendants rewrite the statute to read as follows: "An employee [being paid an hourly rate that is] less than [$10.20 per hour] is entitled to recover in a civil action...." But that is not what the text of the statute says. The text provides for a civil action in any circumstance where an employee is "receiving less than the legal minimum wage applicable to such employee," which encompasses more than Defendants' narrow reading. By way of example, an employer could pay an hourly employee $12.00 per hour (an hourly rate above the required minimum), but not pay that employee for meal and rest breaks that are required to be compensated under the Wage Order. In such a case, the hypothetical employee is ultimately receiving less than the legal minimum wage applicable to such employee for all hours worked, even though his hourly rate of compensation is more than the minimum set forth by the Wage Order. Such a narrow reading of the Wage Order is not supported, nor is it consistent with its purpose.
Third, nothing in Section 18 defines legal minimum wage. One must look to other provisions within the Wage Order to give meaning to when an employee is receiving less than the legal minimum wage applicable to such employee. Section 3 states that employees "shall be paid not less than $10.20 for all hours worked ."
Finally, Defendants offer no caselaw where a court has ascribed to the proposed interpretation of Section 18. In fact, decisions on this issue undermine Defendants position. Sanchez v. Front Range Transportation , 17-cv-00579-RBJ,
*1185B. Meal Period Violation
Defendants contend that Plaintiff's meal period claims fail as a matter of law. (ECF No. 39 at 8-11.) Plaintiff claims that Defendants violated the Wage Order's requirement that meal periods be at least 30-uninterrupted-minutes or such a meal period is treated as "on-duty" and must be paid. (ECF No. 45 at 4.) Because of Defendants' strict policy of not allowing any more than 30 minutes for a meal period, Plaintiff, and others, would often end their meal periods early and wait by the time clock to ensure they did not clock back in late. (Id. ) Defendants advance three arguments for dismissal of Plaintiff's meal period claims: (1) employees were entitled to a 30-minute meal break and an employee's decision to clock back in a few minutes early to comply with the policy does not violate the Wage Order; (2) under the "predominant benefit test," Plaintiff was not engaged in work activities so the meal periods were bona fide; and (3) employees were paid for all time that was entered into the computer system-even under those circumstances where an employee chose to clock in from lunch a few minutes before his or her 30-minute meal period expired.
The Court will again start with the text of the Wage Order. Section 7 governing meal periods states:
Employees shall be entitled to an uninterrupted and 'duty free' meal period of at least a thirty minute duration when the scheduled work shift exceeds five consecutive hours of work. The employees must be completely relieved of all duties and permitted to pursue personal activities to qualify as a non-work, uncompensated period of time.
First, an employee must be completely relieved of all duties for a meal period to qualify as an uncompensated period of time.
Next, the real question becomes whether strict enforcement of a meal policy violates Section 7. In essence, Plaintiff claims that the strict policy of requiring employees to clock back in from lunch on time, and no later, resulted in a "net meal period" of less than 30 minutes. The Court again starts with the text of the Wage Order, which entitles employees "to an uninterrupted and 'duty free' meal period of at least a thirty minute duration[.]"
Similarly, an employee's decision to clock in early or wait by the time clock to comply with Defendants' meal break policy cannot be considered a violation of the Wage Order. Based on the facts before the Court in this case, an employee cannot trigger a violation of the Wage Order by deciding to clock in early from lunch. Whether Defendants' policy is to be considered strict, very strict, or extremely strict, the method in which an employee chooses to comply with the policy does not create a violation of the Wage Order. This is not a case where the employer is accused of coercing or ridiculing its employees for taking a meal break. Defendants merely have a meal policy, that policy is enforced, and employees are reprimanded for failing to comply with the policy. Such facts do not amount to a violation of the Wage Order. Therefore, summary judgment is granted in favor of Defendants with respect to Plaintiff's alleged meal break violations.
C. Breach of Contract Claim
Next, Defendants argue that Plaintiff's breach of contract claim fails, as a matter of law, because any agreement between Plaintiff and Defendants lacks consideration, which is a necessary element of establishing a contract. (ECF No. 83 at 4-6.) Specifically, any agreement lacks consideration because "Defendants had a pre-existing legal duty to pay their employee in accordance with federal and state wage and hour laws[.]" (Id. at 5.) Plaintiff responds that the employment relationship gave rise to a unilateral contract-Defendants offered work and Plaintiff accepted by performing the offered work. (ECF No.
*118786 at 2.) Plaintiff contends that he can maintain a breach of contract claim because the wage and hour laws are merely incorporated into the terms of the contract. (ECF No. 86 at 2-3.) The Court agrees with Plaintiff.
"Parties are presumed to contract with reference to existing principles of law, and in the absence of clear contractual language the relationship is governed by the rules mandated by law." Dean Witter Reynolds Inc. v. Variable Annuity Life Ins. Co. ,
D. Applicable Statute of Limitations to Wage Order Claims
Finally, Defendants argue that the two or three-year statute of limitations contained in Section 15 of the Wage Order applies to Plaintiff's meal and rest period claims brought under the private right of action provision in the Wage Order. (ECF No. 88 at 5-8.) Plaintiff responds that the Wage Order's private right of action section does not contain a specific statute of limitations; therefore, Colorado's general six-year statute of limitations, C.R.S. § 13-80-103.5(1)(a), should apply to any meal and rest break violations under the Wage Order. (ECF No. 86 at 3-7.)
"[I]t is the nature of the right sued upon and not the nature of the relief demanded which governs the applicability of a statute of limitations." McDowell v. United States ,
Defendants rely on "Section 1103-1:15. Filing of Complaints" to support its argument that Plaintiff's meal and rest period claims are subject to a two or three-year statute of limitations. (ECF No. 83 at 9.) That Section states:
Any person may register with the division, a written complaint that alleges a violation of the Minimum Wage Order within two (2) years of said violation(s), except that all actions brought for a willful violation shall be commenced within three (3) years after the cause of action accrues and not after that time.
The statute of limitations contained in Section 15 only applies to written complaints filed with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment Division of Labor Standards and Statistics ("the division"). The first clause of Section 15 ("Any person may register with the division") modifies the remaining statutory language, which includes the 2-year and 3-year time limits for written complaints to the division. As a result, based on the plain language of Section 15, the two and three-year provisions in that section do not apply to civil actions brought under Section 18 for the recovery of wages.
By contrast, the statute of limitations for FLSA causes of action is contained in Title 29 of the United States Code and is titled, "§ 255. Statute of limitations[.]"
Any action commenced on or after May 14, 1947, to enforce any cause of action for unpaid minimum wages, unpaid overtime compensation, or liquidated damages, under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, ... if the cause of action accrues on or after May 14, 1947--may be commenced within two years after the cause of action accrued, ... except that a cause of action arising out of a willful violation may be commenced within three years after the cause of action accrued[.]
Indeed, Section 18 does not state or incorporate any limitations period for private rights of action. The Wage Order does not contain any other limitations provisions. The Court must, therefore, look to Colorado's general statutes of limitation for an answer. Plaintiff's wage period and meal period claims arise by statute-the Wage Order. Thus, these claims are neither based in contract nor tort, making inapplicable the general limitations on actions *1189found in
IV. CONCLUSION
Based on the foregoing, the Court:
(1) GRANTS IN PART and DENIES IN PARTDefendants' [First] Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (ECF No. 39); and
(2) DENIESDefendants' Second Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (ECF No. 83).
Plaintiff alleges that each defendant was materially involved in the operation of the McDonald's restaurants and, therefore, a jointly and severally liable "employer" of the Plaintiff for the alleged wage and hour violations. (ECF No. 1 at ¶ 6.) Neither of Defendants' motions challenges the existence of an employer-employee relationship as to any of the named defendants. Thus, the Court collectively refers to "the Defendants" as though each was an employer of Plaintiff.
For ease of reading, the Court refers to the Wage Order's regulations only by the subsection number. For example, Section 1103-1:8 is simply referred to as "Section 8."
Defendants also argue the Wage Order does not create an "implied private right of action" for violations of the meal and rest period provisions. (ECF No. 39 at 6-8.) Here, Section 18 of the Wage Order expressly creates a private right of action-the issue is whether Plaintiff's claims are within the scope of that express private right of action. Notwithstanding, the Court notes that this case is distinguishable from Silverstein v. Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Health Servs. Corp. ,
Plaintiff includes two additional facts in response to Defendants' First Motion. (See ECF 45-1, ¶¶ 11, 12.) Plaintiff cites to Paragraph 3 of his declaration in support of the additional facts. But Paragraph 3 does not provide evidentiary support for either additional fact. Therefore, Plaintiff has failed to provide competent evidence in response to Defendants' First Motion or create a material factual dispute.
In essence, Defendants have moved for judgment on the pleadings, not partial summary judgment.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Thomasz SOBOLEWSKI, on Behalf of Himself and All Similarly Situated Persons v. BOSELLI & SONS, LLC, a Colorado Limited Liability Company, Boselli Investments LLC, a Colorado Limited Liability Company, James J. Boselli, Don A. Boselli, Francis A. Boselli, and Stephen M. Boselli
- Cited By
- 10 cases
- Status
- Published