Frequently Asked Questions
Questions
Should current employees be afraid of submitting this form?
Do I need to pay any money to join?
How did Dicks Sporting Goods not pay overtime correctly?
How can I know whether this is illegal?
What types of jobs or job titles are involved?
Do I have any deadlines I need to worry about, or can I wait to see what happens with this case?
How can I tell if I qualify for this lawsuit?
Have other employees joined this lawsuit since it was filed?
How much money would I be entitled to?
What are the primary goals of this lawsuit?
Am I entitled to unpaid wages even if I was paid a salary?
Answers
Should Current Employees Be Afraid Of Submitting This Form?
No. The law prevents Dick’s Sporting Goods from taking any action against you for joining this lawsuit. If Dick's Sporting Goods takes any action against you, the penalties are severe. You are entitled to either reinstatement back to your job, or the pay differential at a new job, double damages, and attorneys' fees. Should you feel you have suffered from any retaliation, contact us at once.
If you are uncomfortable joining, but would like to talk confidentially (and at no charge) to one of the attorneys handling this case, please contact us.
Do I Need To Pay Any Money To Join?
There is absolutely no cost to join this lawsuit. If the Court determines you are entitled to recovery, attorneys' fees and costs will be paid either by Dick’s Sporting Goods or will be awarded by the Court from the fund Dick’s Sporting Goods creates to pay the unpaid overtime. If the case is not successful, you owe no fees. Therefore, there is no financial risk to you.
How Did Dicks Sporting Goods Not Pay Overtime Correctly?
The law requires that employees be properly paid for all time they are permitted to work. Our investigation has shown that Dick’s Sporting Goods wrongly classified its PGA Golf Professionals as "exempt," which means such employees were paid only a salary, and did not receive overtime.
How Can I Know Whether This Is Illegal?
Many employees wonder why Dick’s Sporting Goods would not follow the law if this practice is illegal as is claimed in this case. There is no doubt that the law requires employers to pay their employees for all the time those employees work. Companies do not pay overtime properly to save money. They expect they can get away with it. Faced with the high cost of labor and overtime, companies try to squeeze as much money out of overtime costs as possible.
Some companies who violate the law figure that if they can hide the violation and not make it too obvious to employees, by the time a lawsuit starts, they can save themselves more money than a lawsuit will cost. But, as the Department of Labor regulations make clear, that does not make the practice legal.
Because companies have not been complying with the law, employees have been recovering millions of dollars in unpaid overtime from the largest companies in America.
What Types Of Jobs Or Job Titles Are Involved?
Employees who worked for Dick’s Sporting Goods as a PGA Golf Professional.
Do I Have Any Deadlines I Need To Worry About, Or Can I Wait To See What Happens With This Case?
Be very careful. Under federal overtime law, employees are generally not entitled to their lost overtime pay for hours they worked more than two (or three) years ago. In other words, once you join the lawsuit, you can only collect lost wages under Federal Law for two (or three) years prior to that date, nothing more and you can only collect lost wages under State Law for six years prior to that date. To stop this clock from running out on your claims and to prevent yourself from losing any more money, you need to join this lawsuit.
The court has approved notice. If you decide to join this lawsuit, the consent form and attached information sheet must be postmarked no later than Monday, September 10, 2007, in order to allow plaintiff’s counsel sufficient time to file the opt in consent form with the federal court.
How Can I Tell If I Qualify For This Lawsuit?
If you are/were employed as a PGA Golf Professional for Dick’s Sporting Goods between January 25, 2003 and March 6, 2005, and there were weeks where you worked over forty hours, we expect that you will qualify to participate in the action. However, the Court will have to make that determination.
Additionally, you can contact us to see if you qualify. There is no charge or obligation if you contact us. We will keep any information you provide strictly confidential. However, you are not a member of the lawsuit unless you mail the consent form to us by September 10, 2007.
Have Other Employees Joined This Lawsuit Since It Was Filed?
Yes, other current or former employees have joined this lawsuit.
How Much Money Would I Be Entitled To?
The attorneys handling this case have estimated the damages in this case to be in the millions of dollars.
It would take a detailed calculation based on the facts of your case to determine how much you would be owed. Remember you will not be represented and you will not be entitled to any money until you join the lawsuit. If you decide to join the lawsuit, your consent form must be postmarked no later than Monday, September 10, 2007. You must take that step to get any recovery and a Court will have to make a determination as to whether you will be included in the action.
What Are The Primary Goals Of This Lawsuit?
Our primary goals in this class action are to:
- Recover unpaid wages, overtime and other damages for employees who were not properly paid for the time they worked.
What if I didn’t keep time records? Can I still recover? Or what if my employer encouraged me to record less time than I worked on the time cards?
Yes. The law requires the employer to keep accurate records of the number of hours an employee works. If the records are either not accurate or not in existence, your reasonable estimate of the number of hours you worked is taken as true. This means that the amount you get is calculated by your reasonable estimate of the hours you worked, not by what the employer thinks the employees worked.
Am I entitled to unpaid wages even if I was paid a salary?
Yes. The fact that you were paid a salary does not matter. If you worked over 40 hours a week and do not fall into several narrow legal classifications, you must be paid overtime at time and one-half, even if you are paid a salary. Your hourly rate for hours over 40 is calculated by dividing the amount you were paid in that week by 40 and multiplying that by time and one-half. In your case, our investigation has shown that Dick’s Sporting Goods wrongly classified its PGA Golf Professionals as "exempt." We believe these employees, though paid a salary, were nonetheless supposed to be paid overtime for the weeks where those employees worked over forty hours.
My employer did not pre-approve me for working overtime. However, I had to work the extra time in order to get the job done, and my employer permitted me to work the extra time. Am I still entitled to lost overtime?
Yes. You are owed this money even if you agreed to work this extra time, and even if you did not expect to get paid for it. If the court finds you were improperly classified as "exempt" it does not matter if you agreed to work the extra time or not.
When I left the company, I signed an agreement releasing them from certain types of claims. Does this mean I can’t get money in this case?
No. Even if you signed a release, you are entitled to recover the unpaid wages you are owed under federal law. Therefore, you are free to join the lawsuit.