By Thomas Tracy and Larry McShane
New York Daily News
NEW YORK 鈥� A Manhattan federal appeals court upheld a multimillion-dollar jury verdict ordering the city to compensate New York City Fire Department paramedics and EMTs for unpaid work done before and after their scheduled shifts.
The 40-page Friday decision by the Second Circuit Court declined to reverse a 2019 federal jury verdict that the city had violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act by stiffing the 2,519 plaintiffs, with compensation set at nearly $18 million.
鈥淭his is excellent news for the plaintiffs, and for all EMTs and paramedics who work for the city, risking their lives on a daily basis to protect the citizens of New York,鈥� said Oren Barzilay, President of EMS Local 2507.
鈥淭hey deserve to be paid for all their work time and the city鈥檚 time-keeping system deprived them of that,鈥� he continued. 鈥淓very day our members are robbed of their dignity when they look at their checks. Sadly, we don鈥檛 even have an adequate payroll system.鈥�
Lawyers for the city did not return a Saturday call for comment on the ruling.
In the earlier case, against the city for $17,780,063 after a three-week trial, covering back pay in the amount of $7,238,513, the same amount in liquidated damages and another $3,303,037 for attorneys鈥� fees.
鈥淭he city accordingly asks that we reverse the jury鈥檚 verdict or remand for a new trial on damages,鈥� wrote the federal panel. 鈥淲e decline to do so and instead affirm ... The city knew the plaintiffs were performing unreported shift work yet took insufficient action to remedy the situation.鈥�
The workers鈥� lawsuit charged employees received no compensation for work done 15 minutes before and 15 minutes after their eight-hour shifts. The EMTs typically prepped their equipment prior to the scheduled shift starts and stayed late to re-stock their ambulances and update workers arriving for the next shift.
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鈥淏ecause the record supports the jury鈥檚 finding that the city had a policy or practice of requiring plaintiffs to perform work before and after their shifts, we uphold the jury鈥檚 verdict that the city (was in violation) by not compensating them for that work,鈥� the decision added.
The jury deliberated for less than two hours before returning its verdict in favor of the city workers. The union had argued the EMTs and paramedics were denied the extra pay even though they were logged into the city鈥檚 electronic time-keeping system, known as , when handling their pre- and post-shift responsibilities.
The lawsuit was brought in February 2013, with the union seeking back pay for their extra time and alleging the city violated fair labor standards with its policy. City attorneys argued they should not be held liable for the unpaid overtime because the workers had failed to report the hours at issue.
鈥淏ut an employer must pay for all work it knows about or requires, even if the employee does not specifically request compensation for it,鈥� read the decision.
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