Kellar v. Summit Seating, Inc., No. 11-1221 (7th Cir. 2011)
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Plaintiff claimed that she regularly arrived at her employer's factory 15 to 45 minutes before the start of her 5:00 a.m. shift and spent about 5 minutes unlocking doors, turning on lights, turning on the compressor, punching in on the time clock, and preparing coffee. She spent 5 to 10 minutes reviewing schedules and gathering and distributing materials to subordinates' workstations, so that they could immediately start work. Any remaining time was spent preparing models for production, cleaning the work area, or checking patterns. She was not told to come in before her shift, nor did she request an early start time or report errors in her pay based on pre-shift work. There was some evidence that early arrivals at the factory were used for socializing. The district court held that she was not entitled to overtime wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. 207(a). The Seventh Circuit affirmed. The employer had no reason to know, or even suspect, plaintiff was acting in direct contradiction of a company policy that she herself was partially responsible for enforcing.
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