Sec'y Labor v. Timberline S., LLC

**Court Rules Against Company for Not Paying Overtime** This case involved Timberline South, LLC, a company that failed to properly pay workers overtime wages as required by federal law. The Department of Labor sued the company, claiming it violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) by not paying time-and-a-half for hours worked over 40 per week. The court ruled in favor of the workers and against Timberline South. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals confirmed that the company was required to follow federal wage laws and was indeed liable for not paying proper overtime. However, the court sent the case back to a lower court to recalculate the damages because the original award incorrectly included regular commute time and meal breaks when calculating overtime hours. This decision matters for workers because it reinforces that employers must follow federal overtime rules. Companies cannot simply ignore the requirement to pay time-and-a-half for overtime hours. However, the ruling also clarifies that not all time counts as work time—regular commuting and meal periods typically don't count toward overtime calculations. Workers should understand their rights to overtime pay while knowing that certain non-work activities aren't included in those calculations.