Schwebel’s sued for overtime pay

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

A newly filed federal class-action lawsuit says the Schwebel Baking Co. misclassified its Ohio route sales delivery drivers and denied them overtime pay.

The initial plaintiffs, route drivers Raymond Boyd and Terry L. Vukich, both of Stark County, whose lawsuit demands overtime pay for them, are represented by the Nilges Draher LLC law firm in Canton.

The case was filed this month under the Fair Labor Standards Act, which requires that hourly and other nonexempt workers be paid overtime at a rate of 1.5 times their regular rate for every hour worked in excess of 40 hours a week.

Schwebel’s is accused of having a long-standing practice of classifying its route drivers as exempt sales employees, meaning that these drivers, who routinely work 50 or more hours per week, are not paid overtime, according to a news release issued on behalf of the law firm.

The lawsuit alleges that the drivers are mis-classified as exempt sales employees because their primary duty is to deliver baked products and manage inventory, not to make sales.

The lawsuit, which demands a jury trial, says the class includes anyone who was a Schwebel’s route sales delivery driver within the past three years and who has not received the proper overtime pay.

Schwebel’s officials are reviewing the suit and offered no further comment.