Bell v. SE PA Transp. Auth., No. 12-4031 (3d Cir. 2013)
Annotate this CaseOn behalf of themselves and former and current bus drivers and trolley operators (collectively, the Operators) employed by SEPTA, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, the plaintiffs filed a purported class action under the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. 201, to recover unpaid wages and overtime compensation for work performed during morning “pre-trip” inspections required before the start of each daily run. The district court dismissed on the ground that the FLSA claim required the interpretation of provisions of collective bargaining agreements between SEPTA and the unions representing the Operators and was, therefore, subject to those agreements’ grievance and arbitration provisions. The Third Circuit vacated, reasoning that the FLSA claim does not require the interpretation of the collective bargaining agreements; the Operators based their claims solely on their statutory, rather than their contractual, rights to recovery,
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