San Diego Firms File Class Action Lawsuit Against UPS

Aug. 20, 2009 - PRLog -- In a class action lawsuit filed yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, Plaintiff Laura Meza alleged that United Parcel Service, the world's largest package delivery service, has been withholding as much as $100 million in overtime wages from its account managers nationwide.  Representing Ms. Meza are David Sanford of the Washington, D.C. office of Sanford Wittels & Heisler; Steven L. Wittels, Jeremy Heisler, and Janette Wipper of the firm's New York office; and Edward D. Chapin and Jill Sullivan of the San Diego law firm Chapin Wheeler LLP.

Ms. Meza is a UPS account manager in Fullerton, California.  Her lawsuit alleges violations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and California’s state wage and hour laws.  She seeks to represent thousands of similarly situated account managers nationwide.  UPS is a multi-billion dollar corporation, and its account managers promote its business door to door for up to sixty hours a week.  Ms. Meza alleges that UPS underpays its account managers by claiming they do not deserve overtime pay.

Jill Sullivan, Ms. Meza’s attorney, explains, “UPS does not deliver fair treatment to its employees.  Rather than hiring additional employees to share the workload, or paying its employees legally mandated overtime wages, the company saves money by overworking and underpaying its account managers.  These employees deliver business opportunities to UPS, and the law requires UPS to deliver their overtime paychecks.”

“I work up to 60 hours every week,” Ms. Meza describes.  ”My day starts at 6 a.m., when I have to go to the office to get my daily manifest lists and respond to calls and emails from customers and supervisors.  From 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., I’m out in the field pitching UPS products to customers.  When I finally come home, I have to keep responding to work emails.  And even on weekends, vacations and sick days, I’m routinely expected to do paperwork, calls and emails for work.  That’s the grinding routine that UPS requires of all of us account managers.”

The complaint against UPS charges that the company fails to pay its account managers overtime wages for work in excess of 40 hours a week and eight hours a day; fails to provide these workers with mandatory meal periods and rest breaks; and fails to keep accurate records of the hours these employees work.

Ms. Meza’s attorneys estimate the company’s liability at $100 million.  The class action suit demands that UPS immediately stop its unlawful pay practices and pay Ms. Meza and the account managers she represents unpaid wages plus all damages permitted by California and federal wage and hour laws.

Chapin Wheeler LLP is a boutique trial law firm in San Diego, California.  The firm represents plaintiffs in class actions and as individuals in business disputes as well as employment, employment discrimination, contract, consumer law, and personal injury matters.  Individuals with such claims are encouraged to contact Chapin Wheeler directly at (619) 241-4810, echapin@chapinwheeler.com, or jsullivan@chapinwheeler.com.  More information about Chapin Wheeler LLP is available at http://www.chapinwheeler.com .

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