Employment and FLSA Litigation - Written by Beasley Allen on Thursday, October 6, 2011 13:03 - 19 Comments

Tyson Food Paying $32 Million To Settle Safety Gear Lawsuit

Tags: Fair Labor Standards Act, labor department, lawsuit, lawyer, litigation, settlement, Tyson Food

Tyson Foods Inc. will pay $32 million to settle a long-running dispute over whether it should compensate poultry plant workers for time they spend putting on and taking off protective clothing. In a consent decree filed in U.S. District Court in Columbus, Ga., Tyson agreed to make payments averaging around $1,000 per worker to about 17,000 current and former employees around the country. This case has been in court for 12 years.

The workers accused Tyson of violating the Fair Labor Standards Act by failing to pay them for time spent putting on and taking off gear they were required to wear to protect themselves and the poultry. The union, which helped bring the lawsuit, said that current and former Tyson workers would receive payments averaging about $1,000. A federal district judge in Georgia has approved the settlement.

Workers who sued the Springdale, Ark.-based company claimed meatpacking and food processing employees were deprived of thousands of dollars in lost pay for time they spent donning and doffing safety gear. Tyson settled a similar dispute last year with the Labor Department by agreeing to change its compensation policy. The company has 117,000 workers worldwide. This settlement was announced by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.

In an effort to help workers who have been wrongly denied their overtime compensation, lawyers in our firm routinely pursue class action litigation under the Fair Labor Standards Act to recover unpaid overtime wages. For more information on this subject, contact Larry Golston, a lawyer in our Consumer Fraud Section, at 1-800-898-2034 or Larry.Golston@beasleyallen.com. You can also visit our website at www.beasleyallen.com.

Source: Huffington Post

19 Comments

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carlotta champ
Oct 20, 2011 22:17

i wanna to know do tyson in glen allen virgina get some of that 32million . everyone wants to know i work at that plant i think we should get some of that money every plant is the same way .

carlotta champ
Nov 9, 2011 12:06

i just got my portion of the lawsuit ita was 300 i thought it was a 1000 where is the rest of my money and they took taxes out i need my money

calvin ewing
Nov 10, 2011 18:52

I work at tyson foods in shelbyville tn. tyson gave me a number to call, about the lawsuit. u get a recording saying u may get more info, before nov. 30. 855-300-622
does anyone know more.

calvin ewing
Nov 10, 2011 18:53

855-300-6220

Maxine Mcreynolds
Nov 20, 2011 10:52

I wnat to know if anybody at the Jacksonville plant can get the claim? because the plant closed down and alot of people have a change of address could some body answer that plz

Deborah
Nov 29, 2011 11:23

I worked at Tysons in Arkansas, and cannot get any info from Tysons, or the labor board. I was never given any paperwork to join a lawsuit, or any numbers to get information, I do know that others working at the plant recently received a $300 check and they did not fill out any paperwork either. They received it as a “bonus” which Tysons doesnt do. How clever. i want my money that i earned and is due to me.

shundra
Dec 14, 2011 19:35

call 18004457890 and there is a recording letting you know the status but they say if a consent form wasn’t filled out by 2009 its to late to join

peter koeppe
Dec 19, 2011 23:53

I am a former employee of tyson foods in waldron, ar and i was there in 2009 and filled and signed lawsuit papers, do or can you help me find out why i did not get any money that was owed to me

Renee Ewing
Jan 18, 2012 22:54

I worked at Tyson Foods and I was there also in 2009. I also filled and signed lawsuit papers and sent them in to the address on the paper. I called the number , I waited and the the person I talked to told me I was not on the list. This is a 12 -year- old litigation. Why are they denying people that worked there at the time there wages? It’s not fair and unconstitutional. We have a right to our wages due!!!!!! We all need to stand together and get something done about this.

mr
Jan 19, 2012 22:15

have anybody got paid yet?

HOWARD LEWIS
Feb 18, 2012 17:17

I FILE MY W2 WITH TYSON, SO WHEN WE GET PAID SINCE THE SETTLEMENT HAS BEEN WON.

DSR
Mar 9, 2012 18:10

I worked at tyson in ar for 13 years… shouldn’t I get more than say someone who only worked there a year? I recieved and mailed back a W4 form a couple of months ago, how long till I get a check?

Nicole Morrow
Mar 12, 2012 6:55

I myself filled out a W2 form and that is been over 3 months ago and i still have not received any compensation. I dont understand what is taking so long!

cathy
Apr 4, 2012 11:43

My husband received the W-4 because he worked at the North Little Rock plant in Arkansas and qualified for the settlement. When we contacted a live person-after we mailed the form back on March of this year- we were told that the payments are scheduled to be sent out starting in June of this year. They said there will be 2 checks in the packet sent out. The first check is for the overtime wages and taxes will be taken out; hence the w-4. The second check is for damages and is not subject to taxes.

Paula
Apr 27, 2012 13:14

Well I filed my w 4 and was told in a letter that first check is taxed and the second one you have to pay to the taxes on hence why they are sendin a 1099 with them and when are they sending out checkes …and I never gotten a number to talk to a human on the phone ….and if anyone has it please post thanks

Paula
Apr 27, 2012 13:21

DOES ANYONE HAVE THE INFORMATION WITH THE LAWYERS NAMES AND NUMBERS… ON IT PLEASE POST
CALLED THE 855-300-6220 NUMBER THEY ARE SAYIN SOMETIME FALL 2012 FOR CHECKS

Larry
May 2, 2012 20:47

I was wondering when are we actually going to receive our checks. First they were saying sometime in June or the end of June 2012. Now they are saying by the Fall 2012. Some of us can not wait that long. We are needing our money, and we need it now. Who can we contact about this?

DSR
May 8, 2012 19:23

thanks Cathy… maybe I can quit checking my mailbox every day now… untill June that is.

HAZEL BLANCHE RICHARDSON
May 16, 2012 19:55

My name is Hazel Richardson and I am one of the former employee’s of the Tyson Chicken Lawsuit in Center Texas. I am inquiring about the settlement and payments. If you could please email me and give any information that pertains to me about the setttlement i would greatly appreciate it. You can contact me if needed at 936-554-1751. You can also send any information to the above email and I will get back with you as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Hazel Blanche Richardson