LaCurtis v. Express Medical Transporters

EMT appealed the district court's denial of summary judgment in this consolidated putative class- and collective-action case. The district court granted partial summary judgment for plaintiff on the issue of EMT's liability to pay him for unpaid overtime. The Eighth Circuit held that the district court did not err in failing to give controlling deference to 49 C.F.R. 571.3(b)(1) in interpreting the term "covered employee" with respect to section 306 of the SAFETEA-LU Technical Corrections Act of 2008 (TCA), Pub. L. No. 110-244, Title III, 306(a)(2008). In light of the comprehensive redesign and conversion process the paralift vans underwent before being placed into service, the paralift vans plaintiff drove were not "designed or used to transport more than 8 passengers" under TCA 306(c). Accordingly, the Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's conclusion that EMT was liable to plaintiff for overtime pay. View "LaCurtis v. Express Medical Transporters" on Justia Law