Federal Court Finds Intrastate Truck Drivers Eligible For Overtime Pay, by Andrew Iwata, Lawyer Up Blog

http://tinyurl.com/mkem29j

In Butcher v. TSWS d/b/a Pot-O-Gold, (S.D. Tex. August 25, 2011), the Southern District of Texas denied an employer’s motion for summary judgment in a case involving FLSA overtime claims brought by truck drivers.  The employer argued that the plaintiffs were subject to the FLSA’s motor carrier exemption (which would mean that the drivers were not entitled to overtime pay) because the plaintiffs work affected the safety of interstate transportation.  Although the plaintiffs never crossed state lines in driving their trucks for the defendant, the company claimed that the employees could have been called upon to drive interstate at any time.  The court acknowledged that under Songer v. Dillon Resources, 618 F.3d 467 (5th Cir. 2010), an intrastate driver may be exempt during periods when the driver ‘could have been called upon’ to drive interstate at any time.  The court acknowledged that under Songer v. Dillon Resources, 618 F.3d 467 (5^th Cir. 2010), an intrastate driver may be exempt during periods when the driver “could have been called upon” to drive interstate.