Benton

INTRODUCTION

Plaintiffs filed a wage and hour class action lawsuit against Telecom Network Specialists, Inc. (TNS), alleging, among other things, violation of meal and rest break requirements and failure to pay overtime. The proposed class consisted of approximately 750 cell phone tower technicians, most of whom were hired and paid by staffing companies that contracted with TNS. The remainder of the technicians—approximately 15 percent of the proposed class—were hired and paid by TNS directly. Plaintiffs alleged that TNS was the employer of both categories of technicians and moved to certify their claims.

The trial court denied the motion, concluding that, even if it assumed TNS was the employer of every class member, plaintiffs could not establish TNS’s liability through common proof because (1) the technicians worked under “a diversity of workplace conditions” that enabled some of them to take meal and rest breaks, and (2) the staffing companies that hired and paid many of the TNS technicians had adopted different meal, rest break and overtime policies throughout the class period. We reverse the order and remand for further proceedings.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL…