On January 14, 2014, two domestic service employees who provide companionship services filed a proposed class action lawsuit in Michigan state court seeking overtime compensation. The lawsuit alleges that Care Providers WB, LLC and LL Ten, LLC, franchisees of CareMinders Home Care, violated Michigan state overtime laws by failing to pay their domestic service employees who provide companionship services one and one-half times their regular rate of pay for hours worked over forty (40) in a workweek, and instead paid them their regular hourly rate for such overtime hours.
According to the complaint, CareMinders Home Care is a company that sells franchise businesses nationwide that offer companionship, in-home care, and related home support assistance to disabled, convalescing, and dependent individuals in their homes, nursing homes, and assisted living facilities. The complaint also states that the franchisees named as defendants are located in West Bloomfield and Lansing, Michigan, and currently operate under the same ownership.
Rachhana Srey, who represents the plaintiffs, stated, “Michigan state law requires home healthcare workers to be paid one and one-half times their hourly rate for overtime hours. We maintain that by not paying our clients and other Michigan home healthcare workers one and one-half times their hourly rate, Defendants violated state law.” The case is entitled Walton et al. v. Care Providers WB, LLC, d/b/a CareMinders Home Care and LL Ten, LLC, d/b/a CareMinders Home Care-Lansing, case number 14-28-CL, and is filed in the Thirtieth Judicial Circuit Court in Michigan, County of Ingham.
Plaintiffs in the case are represented by Rachhana Srey and Reena Desai from Nichols Kaster, PLLP in Minneapolis, Minnesota and David Blanchard from Nacht, Roumel, Salvatore, Blanchard & Walker, P.C. in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Additional information regarding the lawsuits can be found at www.nka.com or by calling Nichols Kaster, PLLP at (877) 344-4628.
