Viart v. Bull Motors, Inc., No. 99-1961-CIV.

• Court: United States District Courts. 11th Circuit. United States District Courts. 11th Circuit. Southern District of Florida
• Writing for the Court: Jordan
• Citation: 149 F.Supp.2d 1346
• Docket Number: No. 99-1961-CIV.
• Decision Date: 28 June 2001
• Parties: Nelson VIART Plaintiff v. BULL MOTORS, INC. Defendant

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149 F.Supp.2d 1346 Nelson VIART Plaintiff
v.
BULL MOTORS, INC. Defendant No. 99-1961-CIV. United States District Court, S.D. Florida, Miami Division. June 28, 2001.

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Jamie H. Zidell, Miami Beach, FL, for Plaintiff.

Mark T. Kobelinski, Coral Gables, FL, for Defendant.

AMENDED ORDER GRANTING MOTION FOR JUDGMENT AS A MATTER OF LAW

JORDAN, District Judge.

Nelson Viart sued his former employer, Bull Motors, for violations of the overtime and retaliation provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 201-216. Bull Motors argued that Mr. Viart was exempt from the overtime provisions of the FLSA, and that it had not retaliated against him. After a four-day trial, the jury returned a verdict for Mr. Viart on both claims.

At the close of Mr. Viart's case, Bull Motors timely moved for judgment as a matter of law pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 50 on Mr. Viart's overtime claim, and I reserved ruling on the motion. For the following reasons, Bull Motor's renewed motion for a Rule 50 judgment [D.E. 111] is GRANTED.

I. THE RULE 50 STANDARD

The standard for granting a motion for judgment as a matter of law under Rule 50 "mirrors" the standard for granting summary judgment under Rule 56. See Reeves v. Sanderson Plumbing Prods., Inc., 530 U.S. 133, 149-150, 120 S.Ct. 2097, 147 L.Ed.2d 105 (2000) (citing Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 250-51, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986); Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986)). A motion for judgment as a matter of law requires the consideration of "`whether the evidence presents a sufficient disagreement to require submission to a jury or whether it is so one-sided that one party must prevail as a matter of law.'" Davis v. Town of Lake Park, 245 F.3d 1232, 1237 (11th Cir.2001) (citing Liberty Lobby, 477 U.S. at 251-52, 106 S.Ct. 2505). If substantial evidence exists in opposition to a motion for judgment as a matter of law, such that reasonable people, exercising impartial judgment, could reach different conclusions, then the motion must be denied. See id. I must consider the evidence and inferences in the light most favorable to Mr. Viart, the non-moving party. See Reeves, 530 U.S. at 150, 120 S.Ct. 2097; Davis, 245 F.3d at 1237 (citing Carter v. City of Miami, 870 F.2d 578, 581 (11th Cir.1989)).

II. THE RELEVANT FACTS

Bull Motors employed Mr. Viart as a "pre-delivery inspection technician." Mr. Viart was certified by Ford as a PDI technician, and he worked only on new Ford cars and trucks. Ford's policy is to condition coverage of warranty repairs on Bull Motors employing certified PDI technicians. Bull Motors uses a Ford PDI 46-point checklist¹ that the PDI technicians fill out for every car they inspect. Ford distributes service bulletins for all technicians, including some aimed at PDI technicians. PDI technicians are not supposed to perform mechanical repairs, but some of their duties—such as inspecting for engine leaks and testing the brakes—overlap with those of the service technicians.

As a PDI technician, Mr. Viart's duties included checking the air conditioning, battery, and steering of each new car; checking and refilling the car's fluids; checking the interior of the car (e.g., the lights,

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gauges, locks, mirrors, windows, and seats); and driving the car four to five miles to ensure proper operation. Although Mr. Viart was responsible for installing any accessories in the cars, during the last three years he was at Bull Motors most accessories were pre-installed. Mr. Viart also attached the license plates and appropriate dealership stickers to the cars, and ensured proper door and hood adjustments. Mr. Viart used keys, wrenches, and electric and battery-powered tools— which he bought himself—to complete these tasks. Mr. Viart estimated that he spent an average of approximately 30-40 minutes inspecting each car. Of these minutes, 15-20 were spent test driving the car.²

Mr. Viart's duties did not include washing or polishing cars, and the employees who worked washing and polishing the cars were not certified as PDI Technicians. Primarily, Mr. Viart simply worked through all 46 items in the PDI checklist. Bull Motors did not employ Mr. Viart as a service technician—a repair mechanic— and he was not supposed to perform any mechanical repairs on the cars. If any mechanical repairs were needed in the engine or the interior, Mr. Viart would report the problem to his supervisor, or he would take the car to the service department. Because the vast majority of the new cars he inspected were in good mechanical shape, there was rarely any need for any sort of repairs.

Mr. Viart generally worked six days per week. He arrived at work at 6:00 a.m. and would stay until late afternoon or early evening, depending on the number of cars that need pre-delivery inspections. If no cars needed such inspections, Mr. Viart would leave around 1:00 or 2:00 p.m., but would remain available until 5:00 p.m. When he left, Bull Motors required (through Mr. Viart's supervisor, Pedro Blanco) only that Mr. Viart return to the dealership promptly if he was needed. Mr Viart was not required to stay at home, however, and was free to be anywhere he chose as long as he responded when notified. When he was called in on these occasions, Mr. Viart would return to Bull Motors within 10 or 15 minutes. Including so-called "waiting time," Mr. Viart usually worked more than 40 hours a week. Generally, Mr. Viart worked very independently.

Bull Motors paid Mr. Viart a flat or "flag" rate for each car he inspected, no matter how long it took him to complete the inspection. Mr. Viart's rate was $10 per car, and his annual salary from 1996 to 1999 was between $35,000 and $37,000. Bull Motors did not pay Mr. Viart overtime wages for weeks in which he worked more than 40 hours.

III. THE MECHANICS' EXEMPTION IN 29 U.S.C. § 213(b)(10)(A)

Bull Motors argues that no reasonable juror could have found that Mr. Viart was outside the scope of the mechanics exemption contained in 29 U.S.C. § 213(b)(10)(A). That section provides that mechanics "primarily engaged in ... servicing automobiles" employed by "a nonmanufacturing establishment primarily engaged in the business of selling such vehicles [] to ultimate purchasers" are exempt from the overtime requirements of the FLSA. This exemption, like other FLSA exemptions, is to be narrowly construed. See, e.g., Auer v. Robbins, 519 U.S. 452, 462, 117 S.Ct. 905, 137 L.Ed.2d 79 (1997) (citing Arnold v. Ben Kanowsky, Inc., 361 U.S. 388, 392, 80 S.Ct. 453, 4 L.Ed.2d 393 (1960)); Freeman v. City of Mobile, 146 F.3d 1292, 1297 (11th Cir.1998) (citation omitted). See also Shultz v. Louisiana

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Trailer Sales, Inc., 428 F.2d 61, 65-67 (5th Cir.1970) (holding that employees of a mobile home dealer who converted trailers into permanent residences were not mechanics primarily engaged in servicing trailers for...