Part of our managed care overtime cases →
In a consent order filed January 17, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia conditionally certified a collective of salaried Care Coordinator-Non-RN employees in Brunty v. Optima Health Plan, Civil Action No. 2:19-cv-255. In this Non-RN care coordinator overtime lawsuit, the court granted the parties’ consent motion. Jack Siegel served as lead counsel for the workers.
Judge Raymond A. Jackson signed the consent order in the case against Optima Health Plan and Sentara Health Plans, Inc. The court granted the parties’ consent motion for good cause shown
.
The order conditionally certified this group as a collective action: All current and former employees employed in the Care Coordinator-Non-RN position, who were employed by the Defendants in the last three years and who were paid on a salary basis.
The order also set a firm limit: the plaintiffs could not add anyone who had not worked in the Care Coordinator-Non RN position.
Notice terms. The court approved the parties’ Notice and Consent to Join form and allowed notice by mail, email, and a brief text message with a link to the forms. Workers could sign through DocuSign and had 50 days after the first mailing to opt in, with one reminder allowed.
This was an agreed order, not a contested ruling, and the parties’ consent motion said that economic and judicial efficiencies would be served by conditional certification and notice. Conditional certification is not a finding that anyone was owed overtime or that Optima or Sentara broke the law.
The case was brought under the Fair Labor Standards Act, but the consent order does not explain the workers’ legal theory or name any exemption. As general information, being paid a salary does not by itself make a worker exempt from overtime.
The administrative exemption requires pay on a salary basis at or above a set minimum. The primary duty must be office or non-manual work directly related to the management or general business operations of the employer or its customers. It must also include the exercise of discretion and independent judgment on matters of significance.
A separate Department of Labor rule says registered nurses generally meet the learned professional exemption’s duties test (29 C.F.R. § 541.301(e)(2)), but this collective was limited to the Non-RN position.
Because the parties agreed, the order does not discuss the certification standard, although many courts at the time used a lenient first step to decide whether to send notice. Some federal appeals courts have since changed this approach — the Fifth Circuit in Swales v. KLLM Transport Services (2021) and the Sixth Circuit in Clark v. A&L Homecare & Training Center (2023).
This page describes a 2020 court order. The time to join that collective was set by the court in that case. If you have worked in a similar role, the Siegel Law Group can evaluate your own claims.
Have you worked as a care coordinator at a health plan without an RN license, paid a salary and denied overtime for weeks over 40 hours? A lawyer can review how you were paid. Contact the Siegel Law Group for a free consultation.
Related rulings: Edwards v. Optima Health Plan, another overtime case against Optima Health Plan.
It depends on the work, because a salary alone does not make a care coordinator exempt, and the employer bears the burden of proving the real job duties qualify. In Brunty v. Optima, the agreed collective was limited to salaried Care Coordinator-Non-RN employees. The consent order made no ruling on exempt status.
The consent order covered current and former employees in the Care Coordinator-Non-RN position. They had to have worked for Optima Health Plan or Sentara Health Plans, Inc. in the last three years and been paid on a salary basis. The order barred adding plaintiffs from any other position.
It is an order the court enters after both sides agree that notice of a collective action should go out. In the Optima case, the workers and the health plans filed a consent motion, and the court granted it for good cause. A consent order is not a ruling on the merits.
The court approved notice by first-class mail or overnight delivery, by email, and by a short text message with a link, and workers could sign their consent forms online through DocuSign. The opt-in window was 50 days from the initial mailing, and counsel could send one reminder.
If you did this kind of work for another employer and weren't paid overtime for hours over 40, 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 50+ class and collective certifications in 20 federal judicial districts across 15 states, and recovered more than $100 million for workers. It has never represented an employer in a wage case. 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, Dallas, Texas.
Automated chat. Not legal advice, not a substitute for an attorney, and using it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Send your job title and how you are paid — no documents, no detailed case facts. An inquiry does not by itself stop the firm from representing someone else in a related matter.
Attorney advertising. Jack L. Siegel of Siegel Law Group PLLC, Dallas, Texas, is responsible for this content.
Before you start
We opened this box, not you. The notice above applies. Start when you are ready, or close it and nothing happens.
Search by company or industry to see overtime case activity.
This is a list of cases this firm filed. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
"Certified" means a judge agreed the case could go forward for a group of workers at once, not just the one person who filed it. It is a step in the case, not the end of it.
Attorney advertising. Case information shown is taken from public court filings and court-approved settlements in cases this firm brought. Every case turns on its own facts and on the law of the court where it is heard. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome, and a certification or ruling in one case does not guarantee the same result in another. Nothing on this page is legal advice, and reading it or sending a message does not create an attorney-client relationship.
Jack L. Siegel of Siegel Law Group PLLC, Dallas, Texas, is responsible for the content of this page. He appears in federal courts in other states by admission to those courts or by leave of court, and is not licensed in every state shown in this list.
