Bridgeman v. Ford, Bacon & Davis

• Decision Date: 25 February 1946
• Docket Number: Civil Action No. L. R. 1054.
• Citation: 64 F. Supp. 1006
• Parties: BRIDGEMAN et al. v. FORD, BACON & DAVIS, Inc.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Arkansas

64 F. Supp. 1006

BRIDGEMAN et al. v. FORD, BACON & DAVIS, Inc.

Civil Action No. L. R. 1054.

District Court, E. D. Arkansas, W. D.

February 25, 1946.

Talley, Owen & Talley, Paul E. Talley, and Wayne W. Owen, all of Little Rock, Ark., for plaintiffs.

Sam Rorex, U. S. Atty., and Warren E. Wood, Asst. U. S. Atty., both of Little Rock, Ark., for defendant.

Owens, Ehrman & McHaney and John M. Lofton, Jr., all of Little Rock, Ark., as amici curiae.

LEMLEY, District Judge.

This is an action under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, 29 U.S.C.A. § 201 et seq., for overtime, liquidated damages, and attorneys' fees, brought by the plaintiff Jesse C. Bridgeman and thirty-eight other men employed as firemen by the defendant, Ford, Bacon & Davis, Inc., in the operation of the Arkansas Ordnance Plant.

The Arkansas Ordnance Plant was one of approximately ninety similar plants, engaged in the loading and assembling of ammunition for the United States Army in the late war, supervised by the Ordnance Division of the War Department of the United States, and under the management of various and sundry corporations, in the present instance, the defendant, Ford, Bacon & Davis, Inc., which operated under a cost plus fixed fee contract, all costs expended being reimbursed by the United States Government.

The plant, located at Jacksonville, about fifteen miles from Little Rock, Arkansas, was constructed in 1941-42. The loading of ammunition began on March 16, 1942, and continued until the end of the war. Since that time the plant has been taken over by a Corps of Engineers of the United States Army.

Jacksonville is a village without fire protection, the nearest well-equipped fire department being located at North Little Rock, about fourteen miles away. Therefore, in the course of the building of the ordnance plant it became necessary to install such a department. Two fire stations were built for this purpose, and about seventy men employed. The stations, known as No. 1 and No. 2, were of practically the same construction. They were two-story buildings, with a fire engine room, inspectors' office, wash room and toilet, downstairs, and a dormitory for the firemen, a kitchen, toilet and shower room, and a room for the occupancy and use of an assistant fire chief and a captain, upstairs. The dormitory, which was occupied by the firemen and used as their sleeping quarters at night, was separated by a narrow hall from the room of the assistant chief and captain.

It was necessary, of course, that the plant have fire protection at all times, so the workdays of the men were so shifted that there was an adequate force in the fire stations, day and night, to man the equipment. Prior to November 29, 1943, about seventy men, each working six days a week, in three eight-hour shifts, were employed.

On November 29, 1943, the eight-hour shift arrangement was abandoned, and what is commonly called the two platoon system was inaugurated. Under this system each fireman undertakes a twenty-four hour tour of duty three times a week. Sixteen hours of such tour are supposed to be devoted primarily to the duties of the fire department, and eight hours to sleep and recreation. Compensation is paid for the sixteen hours but no general compensation for the eight hours.

The inauguration of the two platoon system was brought about in the following manner:

During the summer of 1943 the War Department had under consideration the adoption of the two platoon system in order to conserve manpower. In this connection, considerably fewer men are required in the operation of the two platoon system than in the eight-hour shift arrangement. It seems that the War Department was considering the inauguration of the two platoon system in practically all of the ordnance plants under its supervision. At least, the plan was ultimately adopted in approximately 80% of such plants.

Before any definite steps were taken to install the system, the plan was first submitted to the U. S. Department of Labor and approved by it in a letter from Honorable William R. McComb, Deputy Administrator, Wage and Hour Division, to Lt. Col. William J. Brennan, Jr., Chief, Labor Section, Office of the Chief of Ordnance, War Department,¹ and thereafter submitted to the firemen for their approval by means of a secret unsigned ballot, upon which they would express their approval or disapproval. All of the firemen except two voted in favor of the adoption of the system. These two remained in the employ of the company.

The plan as submitted by the War Department to the Department of Labor, and approved by the latter, was substantially complied with during all of the period of time involved in this action.

In operation the two platoon system gave the firemen many more consecutive hours of freedom from duty than they had previously enjoyed; and on their days off, numbers of the men tended their farms and certain others worked at times at other jobs, or went hunting and fishing.

The men served in shifts of twenty-four hours each, followed by a period of twenty-four hours off duty. Each man normally served three such shifts in each week of employment, and was off duty four twenty-four hour periods each week. About every two months each man would have four consecutive periods of twenty-four hours each off duty. The firemen were required to remain in or within call of their respective fire stations at all times. When the system was first installed the twenty-four hour shifts began at 11 P.M. and ended at 11 P.M. the following night, the first eight hours of each shift being considered rest or sleeping time, and the other sixteen hours as working time or time on active duty. This arrangement, in so far as it required the men to check in and check out at 11 P.M., was a rather awkward one, and after approximately two months of such operation, namely, between November 29, 1943, and January 31, 1944, the checking in and checking out times were changed from 11 P.M. to 7 A.M., and so continued throughout the entire period of time under consideration. Under the latter arrangement the sixteen hour period between 7 A.M. and 11 P.M. was regarded as work time, and the eight hours from 11 P.M. to 7 A.M. as sleep or rest time, but in practice the men were permitted to go to bed at 9:30 P.M. instead of 11 P.M.

The men were paid at the rate of $35 for the first forty hours worked in each week, and time and one-half for the remaining hours worked, but received no compensation for the eight hours of rest or sleeping time, unless summoned to answer a fire call or make an ambulance run, in which event they were paid, for fire calls, time and one-half with a minimum of thirty minutes for any time spent less than that period, and a minimum of one hour for any period of time worked between thirty minutes and one hour, and for ambulance runs, time and one-half. In practice the men earned about $45.50 per week, exclusive of the special compensation allowed them for fire and ambulance runs during the eight-hour rest period.

The general duties of the firemen during the sixteen-hour work period consisted of cleaning of the fire stations and of the sleeping and living quarters, checking equipment, and washing and polishing of the fire trucks and accessories, with occasional drills and practice runs, and of course the answering of fire alarms. Ordinarily, two hours out of the sixteen-hour work period would be all that was required for the routine duties. There were comparatively few fire alarms, and most of the sixteen-hour period was occupied by the men in reading, playing games, listening to the radio, and eating. The facilities provided by the company for the use of the firemen included shower bath and toilets, steam heat, electric fan, cards, checkers and chess for games, a well-equipped kitchen, with range, sink and utensils; an electric refrigerator; beds, blankets and bed linen, with laundry service therefor.

The company pursued a liberal policy with respect to tardiness and brief absences in the course of the shift. Many of the men lived at considerable distances from the plant and it was the practice of the fire chief not to have the men docked for brief absences during the work period if they had a good excuse, and during the rest period it was the policy of the company not to dock the men at all, and they were not so docked except in a few instances, which have been explained to the Court's satisfaction as being errors of timekeepers.

From the time the two platoon system was inaugurated up until May 14, 1944, the men were called out during the rest period for fire runs only, and were specially compensated therefor as above set forth. On said date two ambulances, which had theretofore been stationed at the plant hospital, were moved, one to each fire station, and one or two firemen were called from time to time to drive the ambulances and answer ambulance calls. This work was divided around among the men, and usually assigned to those who preferred to drive rather than to remain at the station. Ambulance calls made during the rest period were specially compensated for as above indicated. Fire and ambulance runs made during the rest period were termed by the witnesses in this case "emergency runs," and from now on will be referred to under that term.

The allegations of the plaintiffs'² complaint were general and not specific. It was charged that between the dates of November 29, 1943, and May 27, 1945, the defendant had failed to pay the complainants certain overtime compensation, and as a result was due them an aggregate amount of approximately $130,000 for overtime and liquidated damages. Two specific issues were developed at pre-trial conferences and in the excellent pre-trial briefs which were filed at the request of the Court: (1) Whether under the Fair Labor Standards Act the firemen were entitled to compensation for the eight-hour rest and sleeping period, and (2) whether, as was contended at the...