[E]ntergy violated federal labor law when it neglected to pay four security guards for overtime hours worked at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, a federal judge ruled recently.
The Louisiana-based company that owns the shuttered nuclear power plant in Vernon was ordered to pay $305,329 for unpaid back wages since 2009 and liquidated damages, according to a March 6 judgment order.
A spokesperson for Entergy could not say whether the company would appeal the decision. An attorney representing the guards said Tuesday they have not received payment from Entergy. The company has 30 days to appeal the March 6 order.
The dispute came after Entergy brought its security in-house. This change was made in response to security lapses across the country, including at Vermont Yankee. In 2009, Entergy dropped its contract with the Florida-based security services company, Wackenhut Corp., now G4S Secure Solutions.
Entergy paid the in-house guards a fixed salary without overtime.
In June 2012, the guards filed a lawsuit against Entergy, arguing the company was violating the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Entergy Nuclear Operations Inc. is fighting similar lawsuits at least two other plants.
The plaintiffs — David Banford, Scott McGratty, Robert Miller and Gary Stratton — are working for Vermont Yankee without overtime pay, attorneys say. Since 2009, Entergy failed to pay the guards for 5,604 hours of overtime, according to Joshua Diamond, a Montpelier attorney with Diamond and Robinson, which represents the workers.
“They have yet to change their overtime practices despite our case,” Diamond said.
The plant’s security shift supervisors are near the bottom in the security apparatus’ chain of command. They are the plant’s first line of defense during events like an armed intrusion or a terrorist attack.
Entergy says these employees are exempt from the law because of their executive and administrative roles within the company, according to court records. But this is an issue that is being looked at across Entergy’s fleet of 11 sites, according to Marty Cohn, an Entergy Vermont Yankee spokesman.
“We are reviewing the judgment order. Therefore, Entergy is not in a position to comment about either the decision or any next steps the company may choose to take. However, regardless of the eventual outcome, Entergy is committed to safely, securely and reliably operating Vermont Yankee through decommissioning,” Cohn said.
In this case, Entergy failed to prove to the jury that the exemption could be applied. Following a four-day trial, a U.S. District Court jury in Burlington determined the company violated federal labor law.
U.S. District Judge William Sessions later said Entergy did not show any evidence that it reviewed federal labor law when it cut overtime pay.
“Entergy may not have intentionally violated the FLSA and may have honestly believed its employees were exempt but there is no evidence it took any steps at all to see that its characterization was appropriate,” Sessions said in the Feb. 11 opinion.
Entergy permanently shut down Vermont Yankee on Dec. 29 for economic reasons. Since then, the state has joined in a petition seeking an investigation into Entergy’s finances. There are at least two overtime pay disputes pending in federal courts involving Entergy’s Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan and Plymouth Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts.
“It seems as if Entergy is attempting to save money on the backs of employees who are in charge of protecting our communities from radiological sabotage and terrorism,” Diamond said.
In addition to the plaintiffs, Diamond said other security shift supervisors at Vermont Yankee do not receive overtime pay. Entergy could not confirm whether this was true.
Diamond said all of these employees could file similar claims, but some fear for their jobs.
“They risked their livelihoods and their jobs and they are still concerned that Entergy may retaliate against them,” he said.
Diamond said he hopes his clients will continue working past the next round of layoffs at the plant. Entergy plans to reduce its workforce from 316 to 127 by mid-2016.
Annie Noonan, commissioner of the Vermont Department of Labor, said the department has not launched an investigation into the dispute. She said the state would have to first receive a formal complaint from the workers.
“This is the first we’ve heard about it,” Noonan said. “I don’t believe we’ve had this as a formal complaint.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the length of the trial.
