SUPREME COURT RULING REDEFINES EMPLOYEE COMPLAINT PROTECTION

Court holds that verbal complaints are protected under the Fair Labor Standards Act Today in  Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corporation, the Supreme Court again ruled in favor of employee rights, holding that a verbal complaint is a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is protected under the Act's anti-retaliation provision.In this case, Kevin Kasten, an employee of Saint-Gobain, was terminated after making repeated verbal complaints to human resources personnel that the company’s time clocks were unlawful because they resulted in employees not being compensated for the time it took to put on and take off protective gear.“This ruling protects verbal complaints in the same manner that written complaints are protected,” says  Alan Lescht, a Washington, D.C. employment attorney and founder of  Alan Lescht & Associates, P.C. “Companies are going to have a difficult time keeping track of what people say. I recommend that employees keep a written record of when they complain even if their employers do not.”Mr. Lescht says that the ruling will significantly impact cases that are currently pending, including one that he has in DC Superior Court filed under the DC Wage Payment Act for a client who was fired after she verbally complained about not being paid her wages.“The employer sought dismissal on the grounds that there was no written complaint,” Lescht explains. “The court has held the case in abeyance pending the decision of the Supreme Court in  Kasten. Now that the ruling has come down in favor of our client, it is likely that the Supreme Court decision be interpreted to apply to state and local wage payment laws in the same way as it is applied to the FLSA."

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