Hayber, McKenna & Dinsmore, LLC

08/21/2023

FIRST CIRCUIT COURT RULES THAT CARD GAME ORGANIZATION, AMERICAN CONTRACT BRIDGE LEAGUE (ACBL), MUST PAY ITS SUPERVISORS AND REFEREES OVERTIME

On Monday, August 14th, the First Circuit Court of Appeals partially overturned a Massachusetts district court ruling that a portion of a card game tournament could be exempted from Fair Labor Standards overtime pay rules.

The First Court determined that, given the nature of the ACBL’s business, the primary duties of their supervisors and referees are production work. According to U.S. Circuit Judge Lara E. Montecalvo, "national tournament directors and associate national tournament directors produce the key product of ACBL-sanctioned bridge tournaments," and had therefore been misclassified as overtime exempt.

The workers are represented by Attorney Raymond Dinsmore of Hayber, McKenna & Dinsmore, LLC, and Attorney Peter Goselin of The Law Office of Peter Goselin. Our firm is proud of this outcome on behalf of employees who should be rightfully considered non-exempt.

Supervisors and referees for bridge tournaments sanctioned by the American Contract Bridge League produce their employer's key product and are thus not overtime-exempt administrators, the First Circuit ruled.

08/14/2023

CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT FILED ON BEHALF OF GROCERY RUNNERS’ DELIVERY DRIVERS

On July 21, 2023, Hayber, McKenna & Dinsmore, LLC and and Lichten & Liss-Riordan, P.C. filed a lawsuit in the Federal District Court against Last Mile delivery platform, Grocery Runners, and Roche Brothers, a local grocery chain that uses the platform. The lawsuit alleges that delivery drivers who work through the Grocery Runners have been misclassified as independent contractors and should instead be classified as employees. The lawsuit alleges that Grocery Runners delivery drivers are the victims of wage theft under state and federal law due to unpaid overtime and unreimbursed travel expenses.
If you have worked for Grocery Runners, and would like to learn more, contact the attorneys at Hayber, McKenna & Dinsmore, LLC at (413) 785-1400.

https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/east/2023/08/04/732623.htm

08/12/2023

CHIP’S FAMILY RESTAURANTS SERVERS WIN $1,336,112.80 PLUS ATTORNEYS’ FEES IN CONNECTICUT SUPERIOR COURT

In July 2023, a Connecticut Superior Judge awarded over $1.3 million dollars to servers who claimed that the chain, Chip’s Family Restaurant, violated state tips laws and failed to pay them the full minimum wage that they were owed. Hayber, McKenna & Dinsmore, LLC filed the lawsuit in November 2017, alleging that Chip’s Family Restaurants did not pay servers their full wage for side work they performed, and instead only paid the lower server wage of $6.38/hour. Side work includes non-service duties, such as cleaning and restocking. Prior to a change in state legislation in 2020 that now benefits restaurant owners, it was unlawful for restaurants to force servers to take a “tip credit” against their earnings for side work. The ruling in this class action was a significant win for servers in Connecticut.

02/23/2023

Can an employer reject my application before showing me my background report?

No. The Fair Credit Reporting Act is a federal law that requires employers to send a copy of any background report obtained to job applicants before they reject them. This important rule prevents employers from rejecting qualified applicants who have no criminal record when the Credit Reporting Agency includes false information. Many national reporting agencies admit to making hundreds of thousands of mistakes each year. The FCRA requires them to use accurate procedures and requires employers to give applicants a reasonable opportunity to clear their name.

Any applicant or employee who loses a job because of a false background check can sue for damages, including punitive damages. The court can also make the employer pay the attorneys directly (saving the employee significantly). One worker in Florida won over $1,000,000 in a case against the reporting agency. A worker in Ohio won over $300,000 against the employer.

Please contact us if you or someone you know has lost a job opportunity because of a false background check.

10/28/2022

Hayber, McKenna & Dinsmore in the news: LAWSUIT SEEKS $5M IN WAGES FOR GREAT ADVENTURE HOURLY WORKERS

The class action lawsuit says workers should be paid for time spent walking across Great Adventure amusement park in Jackson.

10/21/2022

As we move into the latter end of 2022, we would like to celebrate the success of our attorneys this year: Congratulations to Attorney Richard Hayber, Attorney Deborah McKenna, Attorney Ray Dinsmore, and Attorney Thomas Durkin for their Super Lawyers recognition.

Attorney Hayber, Attorney McKenna, and Attorney Dinsmore were recognized as Connecticut Super Lawyers. Attorney Hayber has been selected for eleven consecutive years.

Attorney Durkin was recognized as a Rising Star in Connecticut. This is his second consecutive year as a Rising Star.

Attorney Dinsmore was also recognized as a Massachusetts Super Lawyer for a second year in a row.

We applaud their tireless effort on behalf of employees in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

08/12/2022

Did you know? The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides job-protected leave for prenatal care or when an expecting mother is unable to work because of the pregnancy. For adoptive or foster parents, the FMLA provides a right to take leave for required counseling, court appointments and related travel prior to the foster care placement or adoption.
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla

07/04/2022

Happy Independence Day! Have a safe and enjoyable celebration!

06/17/2022

The .gov means it's official. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

06/16/2022

His long list of unfulfilled commitments wildly exceeds his achievements.

05/02/2022

IN THE NEWS: Our very own Richard Hayber was recently asked by The Washington Post to comment on network host Sage Steele's lawsuit against ESPN. Attorney Hayber discusses Connecticut's Statute 3151Q, which "extends the protections of the First Amendment to the private sector," and may be an advantage for Steele.

Steele claims she was sidelined by the network after speaking out against vaccine mandates and publicly questioning former President Obama's self-identifying as Black,

04/26/2022

Employers often label their employees as "assistant managers" so that they do not have to pay overtime. If you have the title of assistant manager, but feel that your tasks are mostly non-managerial, you may have a claim. For more information, please call us at (860) 522-8888.

Ryan Grim explains how companies get around minimum wage laws and what Joe Biden could do to stop the practice.President Joe Biden waves after speaking Frida...