Suit seeks pay for handling work emails, company smartphone calls while off

CHICAGO Do scanning emails and answering calls from bosses on your smartphone after hours constitute work that should be compensated? A lawsuit winding its way through federal court in Chicago says it does.

Chicago police Sgt. Jeffrey Allen claims in the suit that the city owes him and fellow officers overtime pay for work performed on department-requisitioned BlackBerry phones. If the plaintiffs eventually prevail, it could mean millions of dollars in back pay.

The issue impacts workers everywhere, Allen's lawyer said Wednesday after a hearing in the case.

"Everybody can relate to this because people are being asked all the time these days to work for free and they are being told to work for free using their phones," attorney Paul Geiger said.

Earlier Wednesday, attorneys for both Allen and the city told a judge they had agreed on the wording of documents that will be sent to other officers asking if they want to join the lawsuit.

According to the suit, police brass pressured subordinates in the department's organized crime bureau to answer work-related calls and emails on their BlackBerrys, and then also dissuaded the officers from filing for overtime.

"A culture has developed where police officers feel compelled to work for free in order to possibly gain a promotion and/or maintain their coveted assignment," according to a plaintiff filing.

The city responded that written policy, on the contrary, specifically instructs officers to ask for overtime. And it argues that Allen lumps together urgent emails with ones that, while sent when he was off duty, could have been responded to the next day.

In a critical ruling in Allen's favor last month, U.S. Magistrate Judge Sidney Schenkier said the plaintiff had demonstrated sufficient merit for the lawsuit to continue. It was initially filed in 2010.

While giving the lawsuit a green light for now, Schenkier said complex questions have yet to be addressed, including whether answering calls or scanning emails can be defined as work.

Up to 200 officers are expected to sign onto the suit, after which their attorneys face the daunting task of sifting through thousands of email and phone records to somehow determine which should qualify for OT, Geiger said.

A spokesman for the city law office, Roderick Drew, said in a brief email that he is limited about what he can say about ongoing litigation. But he added that, "The city has stated as its principal legal argument that there were policies and procedures in place allowing Chicago Police Department members to request overtime compensation. That has not changed."

After the suit was filed three years ago, then-Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley said asking for overtime pay for cell phone use is "silliness." He told a news conference at the time, "We're public servants. If I asked for that, I'd be paid millions of dollars."

But the law cited by the suit, the Federal Labor Standards Act, does not apply to salaried public officials, Geiger argued Wednesday. He added that the judge's decision to let the lawsuit proceed underscored its seriousness.

"I'd doubt they think it is silly now," he said.

[annihilatrix]

I don't think this is about police work or civil service or even Chicago. I think this is about what has happened to compensation, workplace expectations, and employers and employees in the past two decades.

I also think that it's time for everyone to re-read "The Jungle" by Upton Sinclair. Especially the part where he talks about how the early 1900s meat-packing industry kept jobs short and turnover high so that they could have a constant, huge pool of desperate, poor, but already-trained job applicants to choose from.

Really. Go read it. It will seem oddly familiar.

[democracy8]

Exactly!!!!!!!!

[Colt4542]

In a small town in the South, department cell phones were cancelled and the officers were instructed to provide their personal cell numbers to the department. If they fail to answer/respond to a call 24/7 they can be disciplined. Yet, the department/city procedures state they will be paid for any overtime work. Yeah, right, try filling out the form and it gets thrown back in your face. Don't answer when off duty? If no answer dispatch sends an officer out to wake you up. Since shifts change every 90 days, not everyone is aware a particular officer is now working nights and is trying to sleep during the day. It's a no win situation.

[AmazingGrce]

if I choose to do work on my off-time that is my choice. When my boss expects me to do so and regards a refusal as a lack of dedication then a decision has to be made by me as to the importance of that particular job. Hourly employees should never be expected or pushed into off-the-clock work. Federal laws prohibit employers from even 'permitting' that sort of work. Unfortunately in the real world this is a real gray area and abuse of employees is virtually impossible to prove.
To those who denigrate police officers - hope you don't every really need one. Yeah every profession has slacker and those who abuse the situation. But Police are NEVER truly off duty. IF an officer failed to respond to a crisis while off duty and the their employer learned of that situation they would be in trouble. So a little 'donut shop' time doesn't bother me all that much. Try walking up to a house to investigate a complaint of a fight or noise and find yourself in the middle of a domestic situation with guns or knives in play and see how you feel. The cooperative spouse can turn their anger loose on anyone anytime and with no warning. No thanks. Cut the police a little slack and the city should rein in their expectations of off duty response to phone calls and emails OR pay for the time. Worst of all this is Chicago we are talking about so any clear cut decisions or information is virtually impossible in that town.

[No_Absolutes]

This is the difference between having a career or just having a job. People who want to nickle and dime their employer will never get anywhere in life. People who are selfless and willing to put in a little "off-the-clock" time recognize that these sorts of contributions more than pay-off in the long run in the form of promotions, bonuses, career advancement and salary increases, good will and strong business relationships.

Oh and by the way, if any worker gets reimbursed for returning a call or an email after hours well fine. But first let's just check their company provided phone, email and internet usage and determine how much they owe their employer for personal use of those devices while on the clock.

[thechooch1]

No_Absolutes well where do you draw the line? Should an employee be "on the hook" 24/7? Businesses seemed to do just fine before everyone had a cell phone. As they say, back in the day, people basically worked nine to five and weekends off. Does anyone work only those hours anymore? And if they don't are they compensated?

[No_Absolutes]

No need to draw a line because it will draw itself. When an employee shows that extra drive and dedication it gives that person more credibility with their employer and a stronger relationship. As a result, the employer won't push things to the point of taken advantage and it also puts the employee in a stronger position where he or she can effectively speak up if it gets to be to much.

[Observe_and_Question]

Many of you talk a good game about not reading emails or answering phones after work.

Have any of you ever had to explain to a grieving family why a case against the rapist/murderer of their 14 yo was thrown out of court because you could not be bothered to read your email/answer the phone letting you know that a trial date had been moved up and as one of the main witnesses you had to be there?

How about not reading an email from a source only to find out she was in the hospital and a large shipment of drugs had been received and distributed for street sale at 1 AM because nobody was there to stop it?

I did not think so.

As for the pay issue take an additional hour of admin time a week whats the big deal. If it your wife maybe it time to trade up to somebody that supports what you do for a living or change jobs.

[No_Absolutes]

Courts don't throw out rapist/murder cases in the middle of the night.

[democracy8]

It's not a question of not answering them, it's about being compensated for your time. Unless you're a salaried worker (completely different set of issues), you get paid by the actual amount of time spent working, by LAW! Try again. No one should have to work for free.

[TJphoto]

My Boss can call me or I can call him after hours to discuss anything about work. Yet I would never dream of billing the company for time spent on the phone, but I work in the "Private Sector" not "Civil Service".

[varigdc10]

The joke about cops where I live is if you need a cop don't call 911 or the actual police number, just call the local doughnut place, they're working very hard on doughnuts. Cops are people who could not do anything else in life, so they became cops. Very simple solution to this Chicago issue. Since the blackberries are department issued just turn them off at the end of a shift, then turn them on at the beginning of the next shift.That's it, isn't it simple ?