Amazon faces NJ wage class action for workers' postshift screening

Amazon must face a proposed class action alleging violations of the New Jersey Wage and Hour Law (NJWHL) and seeking compensation for time spent undergoing mandatory postshift security screenings and taking meal breaks. Although time spent during meal breaks wasn't compensable, time spent undergoing postshift screenings was compensable work time under the NJWHL, according to a recent ruling by the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Facts

Dianne Vaccaro started as a warehouse worker for Amazon in June 2017. According to the complaint, at the end of the workday, she was required to undergo a mandatory security screening before she could physically exit Amazon's premises. The lawsuit alleged the security screening required employees to wait among hundreds of other warehouse employees to pass through security. The security measures allegedly included walking through a metal detector and placing personal items on a conveyer belt to be scanned via X-ray. According to the complaint, if Amazon determined additional scrutiny was necessary, an employee would then have to submit to a mandatory "secondary screening," which involved reporting to the secondary screening area so a security guard could search her.

The lawsuit also alleged the mandatory screenings, the vastness of Amazon's parking lot, and the remoteness of its premises effectively prevented the employees from leaving the workplace during meal breaks. Amazon mandated a 30-minute unpaid meal break during each workday and required employees to punch in and out for each meal break.