The Comp Doctor
Effects of the U.S. Supreme Court's Don-Doff Ruling- Audrey Mross These boots are made for walkin', Who knew that Nancy Sinatra, in all her legal wisdom, would foretell a U.S. Supreme Court decision? Employers are feeling those work boots in their wallets. Toyota recently agreed to a $4.5 million settlement and retroactive 401(k) plan contributions for 1,000 current and former workers over unpaid employee walking and uniform donning-doffing time, according to a Feb. 17 article in The Courier-Journal of Louisville, Ky. The settlement stemmed from issues at the nearby Georgetown, Ky., Toyota plant. That settlement, according to the same article, was prompted by a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court decision last November in the consolidated case of IBP Inc. v. Alvarez, which held that employees' walks between the locker room (where work-related protective gear is donned and doffed) and the production lines in a beef slaughterhouse and a chicken processing plant were compensable.
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Audrey E. Mross is a shareholder at Davis Munck leading the labor and employment group. Ms. Mross focuses on assisting employers to enhance employee productivity and to minimize exposure to employment litigation, through coaching and counseling, conducting in-house training programs for the management team, and review and preparation of employment policies, procedures and agreements. Ms. Mross advises clients on employment discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour, disability accommodation, leaves of absence, reductions in force and government compliance, including federal contractor/subcontractor obligations under E.O. 11246, the Rehabilitation Act and VEVRAA. Ms. Mross is a frequently requested speaker for legal and human resources educational conferences and seminars. Ms. Mross was a human resource professional for 11 years in the hotel and restaurant (Brock Hotel Corp.), oil and gas services (Core Laboratories), and information technology (MTech and EDS) industries, prior to beginning the practice of law. As a lawyer, she continues to support employers and the human resource community and has served in volunteer leader roles for the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), at the national, state and local levels, including her current role as Co-Director of Legislative Action for the SHRM Texas State Council. Ms. Mross received her juris doctorate from Dedman School of Law at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX and her bachelor of science from Kansas State University in Manhattan, KS.
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