My mother worked 18 years for CVS. In Woods v. Caremark PHC, I represented call-center workers, her among them, over unpaid pre-shift time.
More on unpaid pre-shift and off-the-clock work →
My mom, Susan, was a customer service representative at a CVS call center. Before every shift, she and her coworkers had to get “call ready”: log into the computer programs and handle other setup tasks that could take up to 15 minutes.2 The workers said that time went unpaid.
I grew up on the north side of San Antonio in a working-class family. A few minutes before every shift doesn’t sound like much until you multiply it by thousands of people and years of shifts. The law says that time gets paid.
A case over the same pre-shift work was already pending against Caremark in Missouri, certified at a single call center. I joined after that first single-site certification. The court later expanded the case to Caremark/CVS call centers nationwide and approved me as class counsel.3
Mom was one of the workers I represented. “She’s probably the most important person to me in the world,” I told Super Lawyers in 2022. About this case, I said: “It’ll be the highlight of my career.”2 I still mean it.
On February 20, 2015, the court conditionally certified a collective of hourly Customer Care Representatives at Caremark’s Lee’s Summit, Missouri call center. On August 2, 2016, Judge Stephen R. Bough expanded it to all Caremark/CVS call centers, including ones discovery had not yet identified. By separate order, the court denied Caremark/CVS’s motion to compel arbitration.4 Read about the nationwide certification →
The case settled for $16,669,155.84 for 12,034 workers. The court approved it on November 8, 2019, adopting the report and recommendation at Doc. 273.1 The 2022 Super Lawyers article reported an earlier figure of $15.25 million; the numbers above are the final ones in the court record.2
Under the FLSA, an activity before the shift is paid time if it is a principal activity or is integral and indispensable to one. That can include booting up a computer and logging into the programs a call center worker needs to take calls. More on off-the-clock work.
$16,669,155.84 for 12,034 workers, approved November 8, 2019.1
They alleged that Caremark/CVS required Customer Care Representatives to log into their computers and programs before their shifts started, and did not pay them for that time.
Often, yes. Most call center workers are non-exempt and must be paid for all hours worked, including time spent on required pre-shift tasks that are integral to taking calls, with time-and-a-half for hours over 40 in a week.
No. The case is resolved. If you work at a call center now and are not paid for pre-shift work, you may have your own claim.
We work on contingency. We advance the costs of the case, and if we recover, those costs are repaid out of the recovery. If we do not recover, you owe us nothing — no attorney’s fee and no costs.
If you did this kind of work for another employer and weren't paid for time spent getting ready before your shift, tell us your job title, your employer and the state you worked in. We'll tell you plainly whether we think you have a case. Federal law makes it illegal to retaliate against you for asking.
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.
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