Thirty-five women brought action against Salt River Valley Water Users’ Association, under the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C.A. § 201 et seq., for unpaid wages. It was alleged each was respectively an employee of the Association and that the latter refused to pay anything for services of any of them. The Association filed answer denying that any one of these women was its employee. It alleged that any work or service performed by any of these women was done without knowledge of the Association, was voluntary, and was performed without expectation of compensation by the particular woman.

At the trial, it was shown that waters are collected by the Association from a 13,000 square mile watershed and converge at Granite Reef Dam, near Phoenix, Arizona. From this dam, the water is diverted into canals. Through the canals, the water flows into laterals and ditches. Thereby it is distributed to lands of farmers and other users. This water is augmented by an additional supply obtained by pumping.

The area controlled by the Association was divided into sixty-two divisions, each in charge of a zanjero, who was admittedly an employee of the Association. It was his responsibility to see that the water was delivered to the user in such quantities and at such times as the user might order.

Each woman plaintiff was the wife of a zanjero, and lived with him at the house provided by the Association. The zanjero was required to live at his station and to have access to a telephone. He was not required to be married, but practically all of them were. At the stations where the zanjeros and their wives lived, the Association had telephones, some office equipment and office files.

Witnesses for plaintiffs, some wives, testified that they had answered many business telephone calls each day and transmitted business information to users and employees of the Association by telephone and otherwise. Some wives kept various records and made written reports for the zanjeros and did filing work. In some instances, a woman might do work for her husband in the field, turning in water, making farm changes, operating gates and cleaning ditches.

There was the contention that a zanjero could not operate his division without the help of his wife. The officers and employees of the Association knew in a general way that the wives helped their husbands more or less. It was claimed that the Association required the wives to work, for, if the work were not done, the zanjero would be let go.

There was no evidence of any contract of employment between any of these wives and the Association. It was the contention of plaintiffs that the common law rules of employment did not apply and that the Association consented “to suffer or permit” these wives to perform work for it.

The trial court found:

The trial court concluded:

These findings must be affirmed. There is no error. This Court is of opinion no mistake was made.

Affirmed.

. A ditch rider or water-tender. . Fair Labor Standards Act, § 3(g), 29 U.S.C.A. § 203 (g). . Rule 52, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, 28 U.S.C.A.