Arturo Garcia, Cornelio Torres, Guadalupe Jauregui, and James Martinez v. L.A. Hydro-Jet & Rooter Service; Dan Baldwin
Case Summary
Mass & Montes currently represents Arturo Garcia, Cornelio Torres, Guadalupe Jauregui, and James Martinez in the case of Garcia, et al. v L.A. Hydro-Jet & Rooter Service, et al, in the Los Angeles Superior Court, Case No. BC 390939
The Garcia complaint asserts that L.A. Hydro-Jet compelled its “jetters” and “drain technicians” to work overtime hours without justly compensating them by: (1) establishing “overtime” rates that did not commence until after 6:00 PM, resulting in employees being compensated at merely “straight time” for work performed after 8 hours in a day (i.e., between 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM); (2) not charging any of its clients double time until after 12 Midnight, resulting in Plaintiffs being compensated at merely “straight time” or overtime for work that should have been double time (i.e., after 12 hours in a day or 7:00 PM); (3) not compensating “jetters” or “drain technicians” for their meal periods, which were always “on-duty” since they were never relieved of their responsibilities; (4) not compensating “jetters” or “drain technicians” for their “on-call” time, which lasted 24 hours and was (1) every other day when they began their employment and (2) every third day beginning in 2004; (5) not compensating “jetters” or “drain technicians” for performing a “re-do” (i.e., clearing a line that was previously cleared by another Service Technician but subsequently became clogged), resulting in uncompensated labor by said employees; and (6) not compensating “jetters” or “drain technicians”for their waiting time or for their time spent traveling from service call to service call or attending mandatory Company meetings.
The Garcia Complaint against L.A. Hyrdo-Jet & Rooter Services, Inc. and Dan Baldwin asserts claims under Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and California law for: (1) failure to pay wages, minimum wages, and overtime; (2) failure to provide meal periods and rest breaks; (3) improper withholding of wages; (4) failure to reimburse employee expenses; (5) failure to provide accurate wage statements; (6) failure to timely pay wages due at termination; (7) unfair business practices pursuant to Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200 et seq.; and (8) conversion. The class representatives brought this class action pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 216(b) of the FLSA and Cal. Code of Civil Procedure § 382 on behalf of putative class members who hold or held the position of (1) “Jetters” and (2) “Drain Technicians” and/or equivalent positions at L.A. Hydro-Jet & Rooter Services, Inc.
Join this Lawsuit
If you feel that you have worked for L.A. Hydro-Jet & Rooter Services, Inc., under similar circumstances and you would like to join this case, you will need to complete and return a Consent to Join form. As in all FLSA cases, the statute of limitations continues to run against the claimant until they join the lawsuit. You can request a “Consent to Join” form and the other necessary documents by contacting Mass & Montes, LLP at (310) 651-9955.
If you want to join the Garcia, et al. v. L.A. Hydro-Jet & Rooter Service, Inc., et al. lawsuit, it is important you do so as soon as possible. It can make a difference financially, since the less time you are a part of the case, the less time we can recover overtime on your behalf.