McGrath v. City of Philadelphia
| Decision Date | 09 September 1994 |
| Docket Number | Civ. A. No. 92-4570. |
| Citation | 864 F. Supp. 466 |
| Parties | Patrol Officer Joseph McGRATH, et al. v. CITY OF PHILADELPHIA. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania |
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Thomas H. Kohn, Sagot, Jennings & Sigmond; Michael R. Kopac, Sacks, Basch, Brodie & Sacks, Philadelphia, PA and Robert E. Deso, Deso, Thomas and Rost, P.C., Washington, DC, for plaintiffs.
Zane D. Memeger, Thomas P. Hogan, Jr., Michael J. Ossip, and Mark J. Foley, City of Philadelphia Law Dept., Philadelphia, PA, for defendant.
Thomas H. Kohn, Sagot, Jennings & Sigmond, Philadelphia, PA, for respondent.
Presently before the Court is the defendant City of Philadelphia's Motion for Summary Judgment as to Liability, the plaintiffs' Motion for Summary Judgment, the defendant's response and the plaintiffs' reply.
This case is one of first impression in this circuit concerning the application of various provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"), 29 U.S.C. §§ 201, et seq. There are thirteen named plaintiffs, representing various ranks within the Police Department of the City of Philadelphia ("City") ranging from Patrol Officer to Chief Inspector. Pursuant to the opt-in provision of the FLSA, over 4,000 members of the Philadelphia Police Department have joined in this action. They allege that the City violated and continues to violate the FLSA's overtime compensation provision.
The plaintiffs' FLSA claims revolve around the following two related sets of facts: (1) compensation paid to plaintiffs working the current shift schedule, known as the "Flex Schedule"; and (2) compensation paid to plaintiffs at the rank of Captain and above. In turn, the Court will briefly trace the development of each of these factual settings.
Before 1990, the plaintiffs worked a schedule known as the "6-2 Schedule". Under the 6-2 Schedule, the plaintiffs worked for six days followed by two days off. The 6-2 Schedule included a "backwards rotation." In other words, an officer worked the 12:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. shift during one 6-2 rotation period, the 4:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. shift for his or her next rotation, the 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. shift next, then back to the 12:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. shift. While the 6-2 Schedule was in effect, employees were regularly scheduled to work 8 hour shifts.
Employees of the Police Department are paid according to the provisions of the applicable collective bargaining agreement ("1988 CBA" or "CBA") between the FOP and the City. Under the CBA, employees were to be paid overtime for all hours worked in excess of forty hours per week. The 1988 CBA, which was in effect between July 1, 1988 and June 30, 1990, was renewed on July 1, 1990 ("1990 CBA" or "CBA"). It continued to provide for overtime when an employee works in excess of forty hours in a particular week.
The Fraternal Order of Police ("FOP"), the official bargaining representative of the police officers employed by the City, and its members, referred to the 6-2 Schedule as the "Killer Shift". Recognizing that there was widespread dissatisfaction among the FOP and its members with respect to the 6-2 Schedule, the City agreed to fund a Shift Change Study Committee, which was composed of representatives of the FOP and the City. However, despite numerous attempts, the FOP and the City were unable to agree to a new schedule. Therefore, as required under the collective bargaining agreement then in effect between the parties, the issue was referred to an Act 111 Arbitration Panel ("Panel").
The FOP and the City each submitted their proposed new schedules to the Panel. On November 21, 1989, the Panel rendered its decision. The decision (hereinafter "Arbitration Award") adopted a schedule referred to as the "5-2, 4-2 Flex Schedule" or, alternatively, the "4-2, 5-2 Flex Schedule" ("Flex Schedule").
The Flex Schedule divides the Police Department into three platoons, with seven squads in each platoon. Under the Flex Schedule, each squad would work a basic 13 day cycle, consisting of five work days, followed by two days off, then four work days followed by two days off. For Platoon 3, this 13 day cycle never changes. For platoons 1 and 2, the 13 day rotation is altered once every three months. More specifically, for platoons 1 and 2, the rotation goes to 5-2, 5-2, 3-2, 5-2, then returns to the regular 5-2, 4-2 or 4-2, 5-2 cycle. The Flex Schedule increased the plaintiffs' normal work day shift from 8 hours to 8.25 hours per day. The plaintiffs are paid at their regular rate of pay for each 8 hour and fifteen minute shift.
On November 22, 1989, the day after the Arbitration Award, the FOP distributed a News Bulletin announcing that "The Killer Shift which has destroyed our members since 1957 is dead!" The City also announced the adoption of the Flex Schedule. Specifically, then-Commissioner Willie Williams sent an Informational Memorandum ("Commissioner's Memorandum") to all police personnel, announcing the new schedule. The Commissioner's Memorandum stated that the highlights of the new schedule included a 13 day rotation—"generally, four days worked and two days off, followed by five days worked and two days off." Pursuant to the Arbitration Award, the City implemented the Flex Schedule beginning on January 8, 1990 and the Flex Schedule has been utilized by the Police Department since that date.
Overtime for sworn members of the Philadelphia Police Department, such as the plaintiffs, is credited on a daily basis during each pay period in the following manner. If an employee subject to the Flex Schedule works less than 15 minutes over their scheduled shift (up to 8 hours and 29 minutes), the employee receives no overtime. If an employee subject to the Flex Schedule works 15 to 29 minutes over their scheduled shift (at least 8 hours and 30 minutes up to 8 hours and 44 minutes), he or she receives overtime credit for ½ hour. If an employee subject to the Flex Schedule works 45 minutes or more over their scheduled shift, (at least 9 hours) he or she receives overtime credit for a full hour.
Police personnel at the rank of Captain and above ("Commanders") also work the Flex Schedule. They receive a set annual salary, as reflected in a pay schedule adopted by the City. This salary is based on the Commander's rank and longevity with the Police Department. Commanders receive their annual salary in bi-weekly payments.
Pursuant to the 1990 collective bargaining agreement ("1990 CBA"), Commanders receive compensatory time for time worked beyond their scheduled shift on an "hour for hour" basis—one extra hour worked results in one hour of compensatory time accrued. Commanders accrue time in their compensatory time bank, their sick time bank, their vacation time bank and their holiday time, based on time served on the Department. If an official in the rank of Commander is absent from work for less than a day, the time missed is deducted from the time accrued in their compensatory time, sick time, vacation time or holiday time bank, if there is any balance in any of these time banks. If there is no balance in any of the time banks, pay is deducted for the time missed. The formula for determining the amount of leave time to be deducted is set out in the Philadelphia Police Department Directive 66, dated March 4, 1991.
The plaintiffs' Amended Complaint, filed on December 24, 1992, contains four counts. Count I is comprised of active and retired plaintiffs at the rank of patrol officer and all other plaintiff/members of the Police Department, active and retired, who worked the Flex Schedule since January 8, 1990. These plaintiffs claim that under the Flex Schedule they work an 8.25 hour shift, which amounts to 41.25 per week. They claim that such a schedule violates the FLSA's forty hour workweek requirement in that it requires them to work a minimum of 1.25 hours of overtime per week without compensation.
The City, of course, disputes the plaintiffs' assertion that they are entitled to any overtime compensation under the FLSA. First, the City argues that it is exempt from the FLSA's forty hour workweek provision because it has adopted an alternative "work period" of 13 days pursuant to § 207(k). Alternatively, the City argues that the plaintiffs in Count I are not entitled to any overtime compensation because they receive a 30 minute paid meal period, which does not constitute compensable "work" time under the FLSA. The City argues that, even assuming it is subject to the forty hour workweek requirement, it owes no overtime compensation once the 30 minute meal period is deducted from each shift worked.
Count II contains the claims of a second group of plaintiffs. These plaintiffs include current and retired employees at the rank of Sergeant or Lieutenant. Count II also encompasses the claims of individuals who formerly worked as Sergeants and Lieutenants, and who have subsequently been promoted, but have not yet retired. These plaintiffs assert that since April 15, 1986, they were required to report to work fifteen minutes before the beginning of each shift to prepare for roll call. Thus, this second group of plaintiffs contend that they are required to work 8.50 hours per shift under the Flex Schedule, or 42.50 hours of work per week, also allegedly in violation of the FLSA standard forty hour workweek. The plaintiffs in Count II, as well as those in Count I, also assert that the City's method of computing overtime contravenes the FLSA in that it results in their having to work time for which they are not compensated at all, let alone at time and a half as required by FLSA.
As with Count I, the City asserts that it owes no overtime to the plaintiffs in Count II because it has adopted a § 207(k) work period of...
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