Damon Cook, et al. v. Mako Catering, LLC, et al.

Summary

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana granted Plaintiffs’ motion to certify an FLSA collective action concerning alleged unpaid overtime for offshore employees paid a day rate. The court found that the proposed collective members were similarly situated because they were subject to the same overtime policy, and denied as moot the motion to dismiss Mako Unlimited, LLC as a party.

Holdings

1. The proposed collective satisfied the FLSA's similarly-situated requirement because the employees were allegedly subject to the same overtime policy, and the common issues could be adjudicated collectively.
2. Individualized evidence concerning the plaintiffs' and opt-ins' duties did not preclude certification at this stage because the court did not find that such evidence would overwhelm the court or make the collective unmanageable.
3. The motion to dismiss Mako Unlimited was denied as moot after the court granted collective-action certification.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the proposed group of Mako employees paid a day rate was similarly situated under 29 U.S.C. § 216(b) such that the court should certify an FLSA collective action.
2. Whether differences in the duties of cooks, stewards, and riggers and the defendants' individualized seaman-exemption defense precluded collective treatment at this stage.
3. Whether Mako Unlimited, LLC should be dismissed as a party.

Disposition

other