The Inns Senior Living: New Lawsuit Filed for Unpaid Overtime and Meal Breaks

The experienced team of employment attorneys at Coffman Employment Lawyers has filed a new lawsuit against The Inns Management Group, Inc., which does business as The Inns Senior Living. The lawsuit alleges that The Inns violated federal wage and hour law by not compensating its hourly direct care workers for all overtime wags due to its meal break policies.

The Inns is a network of assisted living facilities in Ohio that own and manage assisted living and memory care facilities throughout central and northeast Ohio. The Inns operates approximately 14 locations in Ohio.

What Is the New Unpaid Overtime Lawsuit Agains the Inns About?

The lawsuit alleges that The Inns’s meal break policies resulted in its hourly direct care employees’ going uncompensated for overtime wages owed to them. The lawsuit alleges that The Inns may have automatically deducted a 30-minute meal break from these employees’ hours worked when they did not take a break at all or when their meal break was interrupted.

Federal law requires that employers compensate their employees for all time worked. An employer may only deduct time for a meal break if the employee received a “bona fide meal period”. In order to constitute a bona fide meal period, the meal break cannot be interrupted or shortened. It an employe was unable to receive a full, uninterrupted meal break, because The Inns automatically deducted 30 minutes or The Inns refused to allow these employees to accurately log that your meal period was interrupted or shortened, these employees may not have been compensated for all of the overtime wages they were owed.

What Could I Receive if I Join the Unpaid Overtime Case?

If you are eligible to join and we can show in the lawsuit that you were not properly paid for all overtime work performed for one or more reason(s), the law states that you could receive (1) unpaid overtime for up to the last three years of work; and (2) liquidated damages in an amount equal to the unpaid overtime (aka the potential for double [2x or 200%] damages). If the lawsuit is successful, the law also requires The Inns to pay our firm’s attorneys’ fees and costs.

Can the Inns Retaliate Against Me if I Join the Lawsuit?

No. The federal law under which the lawsuit was filed, the Fair Labor Standards Act, prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for joining a wage and hour lawsuit. If The Inns retaliates, it may be held liable for damages including reinstatement, back pay, and liquidated damages. Additionally, if you believe you have experienced retaliation or are concerned about retaliation, please contact our experienced employment attorneys so we can explain your rights and protections.