Drake v. Tufts — Utilization Review Overtime Settlement

Case at a glance

Part of our utilization review cases →

Tufts Health Plan utilization review nurses settle their overtime case

The case was brought against Tufts Associated Health Maintenance Organization, Inc. and Tufts Health Public Plans, Inc. for salaried Utilization Review Employees. The workers alleged that their job was non-managerial utilization review; that they routinely worked more than 40 hours a week; and that they were paid a flat salary, classified as exempt and paid no overtime.

The court conditionally certified the collective.2 On January 12, 2022, Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV approved the settlement as "an adequate, fair, and reasonable resolution of a bona fide dispute between the Parties."1

Read about the certification ruling →

The legal issue

The administrative exemption covers employees whose primary duty includes "the exercise of discretion and independent judgment with respect to matters of significance." 29 C.F.R. § 541.200(a)(3). Checking a request against criteria someone else wrote is not that. Whatever the job title, if the work is applying the insurer’s guidelines, the administrative exemption should not apply.

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About Siegel Law Group

Siegel Law Group PLLC concentrates in unpaid overtime cases under the FLSA and state wage laws. The firm has filed more than 100 federal overtime cases, obtained more than 50 class and collective certifications, and recovered more than $100 million for workers. Free consultation. Contingency fee: we advance case costs, and they are repaid from any recovery. No recovery, no fee and no costs. Phone: (214) 790-4454 | Email: [email protected]

These are results in other people's cases. Every case depends on its own facts and law. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. This website contains attorney advertising.

Attorney responsible: Jack L. Siegel, Siegel Law Group PLLC, 11341 W. US Hwy 290, Bldg. 2, Austin, TX 78737. Licensed in Texas.

Notes

  1. Drake v. Tufts Associated Health Maint. Org., Inc., No. 1:19-cv-11876, Doc. 118 (D. Mass. Jan. 12, 2022) (approval order).
  2. Declaration of Jack L. Siegel ¶ 5(h), Heckle v. Matrix Absence Mgmt., Inc., No. 7:21-cv-01463 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 21, 2022) ("Class has been conditionally certified.").
$100M+
Recovered for Workers
100+
Federal Overtime Cases
50+
Class & Collective Certifications
27
Federal Courts

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