Summary
The Seventh Circuit reversed the dismissal of Lisa Johnson and Gale Miller Anderson’s putative class claim seeking overtime compensation under the Illinois Minimum Wage Law for mandatory, unpaid pre-shift COVID-19 screenings. Following the Illinois Supreme Court’s answer to a certified question, the court held that the Illinois law does not incorporate the federal Portal-to-Portal Act’s exclusion for preliminary activities. The court also declined to incorporate a federal “benefit of the employer” test into the Illinois statute and remanded for further proceedings.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether section 4a(1) of the Illinois Minimum Wage Law incorporates the federal Portal-to-Portal Act's exclusion for preliminary and postliminary activities.
- Whether compensable work under section 4a(1) of the Illinois Minimum Wage Law is limited by the federal benefit-of-the-employer test derived from Tennessee Coal, Iron & R. Co. v. Muscoda Local No. 123.
Holdings
- Section 4a(1) of the Illinois Minimum Wage Law does not incorporate the Portal-to-Portal Act's exclusion from compensation for preliminary or postliminary activities.
- The Illinois Minimum Wage Law does not incorporate the federal benefit-of-the-employer test; compensability under section 4a(1) is governed by the statutory text and the Illinois Department of Labor's implementing regulations.
Key quotations
“In sum, the plain text of section 4a(1) of the IMWL, as well as the relevant IDOL regulations, demonstrate that section 4a(1) does not include the “benefit of the employer” test. Thus, we decline to read the test into the statute.” (at 11)
“For the foregoing reasons, we REVERSE and REMAND to the district court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.” (at 11)
Factual background
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Amazon required hourly warehouse employees to undergo medical screenings before clocking in for work. The screenings took approximately 10 to 15 minutes and were conducted on Amazon's property under its control, but employees were not paid for that time. Lisa Johnson and Gale Miller Anderson brought a putative class action seeking overtime wages under the Illinois Minimum Wage Law for the uncompensated screening time.
Procedural history
Plaintiffs filed a putative class action alleging that Amazon failed to pay hourly warehouse employees for mandatory pre-shift COVID-19 screenings. The district court dismissed the Illinois Minimum Wage Law claim, concluding that the screenings were noncompensable preliminary activities under the federal Portal-to-Portal Act. The Seventh Circuit certified the incorporation question to the Illinois Supreme Court, which answered it in the negative. After receiving that answer, the Seventh Circuit held that the Illinois statute also does not incorporate a federal benefit-of-the-employer test and reversed and remanded.
Remand instructions
Remand to the district court for further proceedings consistent with the Seventh Circuit's opinion and the Illinois Supreme Court's opinion.