Wilmington agreed to a nearly $500,000 settlement in a firefighters lawsuit. Here's why
Wilmington’s city government has agreed to pay $459,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by a group of current and former high-ranking Wilmington firefighters.
The settlement, approved by a judge last week includes back overtime pay and damages for 11 firefighters who held the rank of battalion chief in recent years. The group of firefighters sued the city last year claiming that department pay practice had violated labor law in classifying that rank as exempt from overtime pay.
The lawsuit claimed that all firefighter union bargaining unit employees were eligible for overtime except battalion chiefs. This, despite the rank not having supervisory roles like hiring and firing, conducting performance reviews and departmental budget setting.
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The complaint added that these employees would, in their regular work rotation, work more hours than the federal threshold that requires time-and-a-half overtime compensation. That’s in addition to unscheduled extra work, the complaint states.
In court filings, the city denied wrongdoing and denied that the workers were incorrectly considered exempt from overtime. However, the case was not intensely litigated and the parties reached a settlement approved by a judge in Delaware's federal court last week.
Half of the $459,000 settlement will go toward back pay and the other half toward damages. The payout will be allocated with each individual plaintiff’s payroll and timekeeping data. About $30,000 will go toward attorneys’ fees and expenses.
Through the settlement, the city also agrees that firefighters of that rank are allowed overtime pay going forward.
Attorneys representing both sides did not respond to a request for comment. It is unclear whether the settlement will be paid through a municipal insurance program. John Rago, spokesperson for Mayor Mike Purzycki did not comment.
Contact Xerxes Wilson at (302) 324-2787 or xwilson@delawareonline.com.
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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Wilmington agrees to pay nearly $500,000 settlement with firefighters
