W. Willard Wirtz, Secretary of Labor, United States Department of Labor v. Dix Box Co. And Benjamin Dix

With certain exceptions not here relevant, Section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act [ 63 Stat. 912 (1949) as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 207 (Supp. IV 1959-62)] requires employers to pay employees “time and a half” for all hours in excess of 40 worked during a single work week; and this provision “obviously and necessarily includes one compensated by a unit of time, by the piece or by any other measurement.” United States v. Rosenwasser, 323 U.S. 360, 363 , 65 S.Ct. 295, 296-297 , 89 L.Ed. 301 (1945).

Contending that the Dix Box Co. and Benjamin Dix, its sole shareholder (Dix) had failed to comply with this provision of the Act, the Secretary of Labor commenced this suit on behalf of several Dix employees to recover the extra compensation they claimed for overtime.

The employees who are concerned in this appeal were hired to make and repair produce boxes and perform various tasks. They were paid at a piece rate for box work and by the hour for the remainder of their services.

At the trial the principal issue was how many hours in all these employees had worked during each of the weeks under consideration.

As part of his proof the Secretary offered and the court admitted into…