PHILADELPHIA – A federal judge has approved a settlement in a Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) lawsuit against three moving companies.
The opinion was issued April 24 by Judge Joseph Leeson.
U-Haul International Inc., Collegeboxes LLC and EMove Inc. were named in the class action lawsuit when Michael Kauffman sued on behalf of himself and others in his situation. He alleged the defendants incorrectly classified him as an independent contractor, depriving him of his full pay for overtime in relation to the times he worked more than 40 hours a week.
But the settlement only applies to Kauffman, who will split $25,000 with his lawyer.
Kauffman sued for violations of the FLSA, the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act, the Pennsylvania Wage Payment and Collection Law. He also sued for unjust enrichment.
The sides were able to reach a settlement agreement after the case was sent to arbitration.
Court documents say Kauffman started working as a “Moving Helper” in late 2010 for eMove. Based on the agreement, the plaintiff wasn’t an employee of the company. In fact, he worked through companies he owned – Kauffman’s Moving and Affordable Moving. Kauffman was paid on a per trip schedule, not an hourly, daily or salary. He also had to pay his own taxes.