Id. | Agawam Police Department McCarthy v. Nw. AGAWAM Before heading out on patrol, if Agawam police officers need to replenish the medical supplies in their cruisers, they know where to go: the closet in the Agawam Plaintiffs were not hired "with the understanding" that weekly salary would cover a fixed schedule of work-weeks with alternating lengths. . Both parties agree that Plaintiffs ale owed the difference, if any, between contractual overtime and FLSA overtime. Man With Several Arrest Warrants Caught Driving Stolen Vehicle In Mein Opp'n Summ. Agawam Police officer retires after 30 years with department to be arrested for low level, non-violent offenses than a white person. $5.37M [10] In response to this argument, Plaintiffs point out that the exception that allows an employer not to pay an employee during meal periods is to be narrowly construed, and the burden is on the employer to show that it is entitled to the exception. Inform data-driven solutions nationwide. ", "I was there to help bring a new life brought into this world, all while trying to remain calm for the nervous parents," he recalls. July 14th, 2006, Precedential Status: . Agawam Nonetheless, pursuant to the Portal-to-Portal Act, if an employer makes a showing of "good faith" or demonstrates "reasonable grounds" for believing that it was not violating the Act, the court has discretion to award no liquidated damages or to award a smaller sum as liquidated damages. Police Presence/Over-Policing (Officers per Population), Unarmed Victims of Deadly Force per Arrest. Anthony Grasso, Officer Edward Conner, and Officer John Moccio have been fired from the Agawam Police Department. Under the Act, an employer who violates 207. The moving party bears the initial burden of demonstrating the absence of genuine issues of material fact. 56(c). Thus statutory overtime for the period up to December 2003 must be calculated on the basis of the payroll records. Police Department 18.6 per 10k Residents, More Officers per Population than 42% of Depts, Source: When Plaintiffs' annual salary is divided by the annual total hours the salary is intended to compensate, this calculation produces a rate consistent with Plaintiffs' six-day schedule. Furthermore, the CBA does not provide for any lunch period at all, much less a paid lunch period, and there is no separate written directive addressing meal breaks. See 29 U.S.C. I just ran into the house ready to help," he explains. [3] The Town contends that overtime is calculated by dividing annual salary by 2080 (fifty-two weeks times forty hours) and then multiplying by 1.6. 29 778.320. 681 Springfield St. In addition, Plaintiffs argue that the burden is on the Town to produce accurate records negating Plaintiffs' claims for FLSA compensation, because through affidavits and payroll records, Plaintiffs have met their burden to demonstrate that they performed work for which they were inadequately compensated. McNally was hired in July 2019 with 11 years of law enforcement experience as a full-time police officer in the Palmer Police Department. The list of statutory exceptions, set forth at 207(e)(1)-(e)(8), is "exhaustive . A sponsored link to your web site could be here for a one-time fee of $50.00. Defendants have had ample opportunity to set forth their substantive arguments. Click here to follow Daily Voice Middlesex and receive free news updates. We are still working to obtain comprehensive data from every jurisdiction in the nation. Massachusetts Police Officer Helps Woman Deliver Baby After conducting discovery, the parties filed cross motions for summary judgment. Thus regardless of the regular rate calculation, the measuring rod for statutory liability remains the individual workweek. Uniform Crime Report, 2,136 Arrests AGAWAM, Mass. 28,533 Residents He previously worked as an estimator, project manager and installer for Kittredge Equipment Company in Agawam. The O'Hara plaintiffs worked under a CBA that explicitly provided for a half-hour paid lunch period for day-shift officers; the procedures for officers' meal breaks were set forth clearly in a written directive. Learn about salaries, benefits, salary satisfaction and where you could earn the most. 114. Plaintiffs also seek declaratory and injunctive relief holding that the Town's employment practice violated the Act and prohibiting further violations. 2023 PASS | All Rights Reserved Site Map | "I feel proud and lucky that I had the opportunity to help this family and their beautiful new baby. Plaintiffs now move for partial summary judgment and injunctive relief. Id. However, the Town contends that the Union "did not press the issue" because it "recognized that I he officers get a meal period." UMPD Swears in Nine New Officers, Promotes DeWolf to at 286. Id. With respect to the non-supervisory *8 officers, however, the Court of Appeals rejected each of the three grounds on which this court relied in granting summary judgment and remanded the claims for further proceedings. O'Brien, 350 F.3d at 290 (rejecting application of the "fluctuating workweek" calculation method in part because the Town's method of calculating overtime is premised on assumptions inconsistent with 778.114). in criminal justice in 2021 from Westfield State University, where she is currently pursuing her master's in criminal justice. Moreover, Plaintiffs aver that they have never seen any policy, procedure, or writing that indicates they are entitled to a thirty-minute meal period per shift. No. and overtime compensation is properly computed for hours in excess of 40 at time and one-half the rate applicable in the particular workweek. salary . Specifically, roll call pay does not fall under the exception in 207(e)(5), because it is not paid at a premium rate. 5. For example, cities with higher rates of low level arrests could benefit most from solutions that create alternatives to policing and arrest for these offenses. Edison Co., 83 F.3d 292, 297 (9th Cir.1996). Significantly, Defendants completely failed to address this issue, despite a specific instruction to do so. . *4 John D. Connor, Moriarty & Connor, Springfield, MA, for Plaintiffs. AGAWAM, Mass. Police also determined that the vehicle Pavone was driving was reported stolen out of Lawrence. United States District Court, D. Massachusetts. agawam police department - masslive.com "He didnt hesitate to help those parents or their newborn baby and helped bring a new life into this world. Officials: no foul play suspected in Agawam body investigation Theres new information on a story we first brought to you as breaking news Monday morning. Aug. 16, art. Instead, Defendants' lengthy submission includes numerous substantive arguments complete with citations to case law and federal regulations. Rather, Plaintiffs are paid based on an annual salary that both parties agree is intended to compensate 1950 hours. . Defendants' approach relies on the fiction of a regular forty-hour workweek and compensate for this fiction by multiplying the resulting hourly rate by 1.6 instead of 1.5. When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Departments with higher scores use 778.114(b), Thus, for example, a "monthly salary is subject to translation to its equivalent weekly wage by multiplying by 12 (the number of months) and dividing by 52 (the number of weeks)." at 8 ("That assumption is preposterous."). We . "As a cop, you dont really have the time to focus on nerves or emotions. Agawam Police Chief Eric Gillis confirmed with 22News an investigation was underway, however he could not release details on the nature of the probe. For employees who are paid on a weekly salary basis, the regular rate is "computed by dividing the salary by the number of hours which the salary is intended to compensate." Join a team of researchers, students, data scientists, activists and organizers working to collect, analyze and use data for justice and accountability. Create data visualizations and content that raises awareness about solutions to the issues identified by the data. By Tristan Smith Agawam police Overall Scores for Depts where We Have Obtained the Most Data. 3 in Car on the Way to the Hospital: 'We Got Stuck in Traffic', Lifeguard, 18, Helps Deliver 'Beautiful Baby Boy' on YMCA Pool Deck: 'So Glad the Baby Is Okay,' Teen Says, McDonald's Employees Who Helped Deliver Newborn in Bathroom Host Baby Shower for 'Little Nugget', Paramedics 'Provided Life-Saving Measures' After Baby Exposed to Fentanyl at San Francisco Park, 10-Year-Old Missouri Girl Named Miracle Helps Deliver Baby After Mom Goes Into Labor at Home, See All of the Celebrity Babies Born in 2020, Identical Twins Welcome First Babies on Same Day, Hours Apart: 'Just Feels Like It Was Supposed to Be'. Roll call pay is a payment compensating officers for the time spent at roll call before each shift. D | E | F | Police Plaintiffs also receive other forms of compensation under the CBA, including longevity pay, shift differential pay, career incentive pay, and roll call pay. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our. The status of this exception is currently uncertain, as the Union has challenged the Town's action before the Massachusetts Labor Relations Commission. Conor Berry AGAWAM -- After learning the FBI is no longer investigating three Agawam police officers accused of using excessive force against a disorderly prisoner in Police officer salary in Agawam, MA - Indeed An issue is "genuine" if "the evidence about the fact is such that a reasonable jury could resolve the point in favor of the nonmoving party," and a fact is "material" if "it is one that might affect the outcome of the suit under the governing law." Time to change the station, says Agawam police chief The rate "cannot be stipulated by the parties" but "must be discerned from what actually happens under the governing employment contract." Since it is undisputed that Plaintiffs' annual salary is actually based on 1950 hours per year, Defendants' argument parts company with reality. [5]O'Brien, 350 F.3d at 292. art. The UMass Amherst Police Department held a swearing-in and badge pinning ceremony for nine new officers and celebrated the promotion of a longtime member of the According to the regulations, employees enjoying a bona fide meal period "must be completely relieved from duty for the purposes of eating regular meals." Corp., 121 F.3d 58, 69 (2d Cir.1997) ("It is well-settled that when an employer fails to keep adequate records of its employees' compensable work periods, as required under the FLSA, employees seeking recovery for overdue Wages will not be penalties due to their employer's record-keeping default"). See, e.g., O'Brien, 350 F.3d at 282 (officers work 1950 straight-time hours per year); id. Id. (Campbell Aff. Absent a further, clarified request, the court will assume that Plaintiffs' summary judgment memorandum was correct and will take no further action with respect to the schedule for roll call payments. The parking lot and surrounding area was blocked off early yesterdat morning while detectives from the D.A.s office, Mass. Regardless of whether employees are "completely relieved from duty," under some circumstances the parties may agree to treat "hours spent in certain types of activities which would not be regarded as working time under the Act" as "hours worked." See also O'Brien, 350 F.3d at 283 ("[T]he Town calculates each officer's overtime rate simply by dividing the officer's annual salary by 1950, which is the expected number of regular shift hours during the calendar year, and then multiplying the resulting hourly rate by 1.5."). 404 (the "Union"), and the. The new UMPD officers who took their oath of office and received their badges are: Auger was hired in October 2022 and attended the Western Mass Regional Police Academy from Oct. 2022 - March 2023. Plaintiffs contend that they cannot be penalized for Defendants' failure to keep accurate records prior to December 2003. Trainer, Trained with Mass State Police Tactical Response Team for Active Shooter in 2016, 2017 and (April) 2018, Trained with James Markowski (ATF Tactical Team Member) in Active Shooter Response in 2014 and 2015, Attended numerous Massachusetts Juvenile Police Officers Association (MJPOA) conferences on Active Shooter Situations in Schools and Threat Assessment, Received four letters of commendation from the Agawam Police Department, Letter of recognition from Windsor Locks Police Department for apprehension and conviction of murder suspect, Letter of recognition from Sonitrol Alarm Company for apprehension of two suspects for burglary, Letter of recognition from Attorney Generals Office for duties performed at Ground Zero after the 911 attacks, Letter of recognition from Lynn Police Department for apprehension of a suspect in a shooting of four individuals, January 23, 2018 CityStage and Symphony Hall Active Shooter Training and Presentation, June 8, 2018 New England Synod Conference at the Mass Mutual Center Place of Worship Active Shooter Training. Sponsored Links | In addition to these charges, Pavone was sought for previous warrants out of Boston, Chelsea and Lynn District Courts. 778.113. J | K | L | art. M | N | O | In particular, the court noted that treating the paid lunch period as "work," would produce an "implausible result," namely that day-shift employees would be required to work 8.5 hours before accruing contractual overtime, whereas other employees would be entitled to such overtime after 7.5 or 7.75 hours. See O'Brien, 350 F.3d at 289 (discussing the fact that only the premium portion of the contractual overtime rate is deemed "overtime" pay that may be offset against any statutory overtime liability in the same week); 29 C.F.R. Posk was hired in October 2022 and attended the Western Mass Regional Police Academy from October 2022 - March 2023. 778.114, and thus the Town could not rely on this calculation method to claim an overpayment. This submission will also include a status report on the pending state administrative proceedings regarding the Town's adoption of the 27-day "work period" exception. O'Brien, 350 F.3d at 287. | 41, 108L, "for furthering their education in the field of policework.". 75, Ex. Application of these regulations presents a special challenge in this case. On July 1, the majority of provisions under this law moved into full effect. 778 is an interpretative bulletin that "does not command formal deference from this court"). McNally is a member of the UMPD motorcycle unit and is also a field training officer. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. 207(e). *7 The CBA makes no reference to a meal period for Plaintiffs. * An asterisk indicates that this location has not provided enough data to be included in our rankings. "I feel proud and lucky that I had the opportunity to help this family and their beautiful new baby," Agawam Police Officer Zach Hall says, Joelle Goldstein is the Staff Editor of TV for PEOPLE Digital. V | W | X | Departments with higher scores use less force , make fewer arrests for low level The First Circuit held that "the Town must include the time required for officers to attend roll-call in the officers' weekly hours worked, [and] that it must compensate the officers accordingly (including overtime premiums when applicable)." As the Court of Appeals noted, the exceptions in the Act are exhaustive and are to be interpreted *15 narrowly. The "regular rate" is defined in 29 U.S.C. | FLSA overtime is calculated at "one and one-half times the regular rate at which [an individual] is employed." McAllister is a decorated veteran of the U.S. Army, a member of the UMPD motorcycle unit and a first responder trainer. N/A every 10k arrests, Source: A 37-year-old man from Western Massachusetts with several arrest warrants was tracked down while driving a stolen vehicle in the Greater Boston area last week, authorities said. He also worked as a patrol officer at Baystate Franklin Medical Center in Greenfield and was a part-time security officer at Deerfield Academy. the police department wrote in the post. "We're all proud of him! 440 F. Supp. the basic agreement covering the rates of pay, hours of work, and other conditions of employment to be observed between the parties." Email: passllc@comcast.net, About /Contact In May 1999, the parties reached agreement on a CBA that covered the period from July 1, 1998, through June 30, 2001. Plaintiffs are entitled to liquidated damages in a sum equal to their unpaid overtime compensation. In cities where police make fewer arrests overall but use more force when making arrests, communities could benefit significantly from policies designed to hold police accountable for excessive force. Posk previously worked as a security agent for MassGrow in Athol, a safety/security specialist for Athol Hospital and an officer intern for the Athol Police Department. 2d 3, Docket Number: Posk received his associates degree in criminal justice from Mount Wachusett Community College and his bachelors degree in aviation science/flight training from Bridgewater State University. | Auger received his bachelors degree in criminal justice with a minor in psychology from Westfield State University. Form Center In addition, Defendants' approach moves a step towards the fluctuating workweek method explicitly rejected by the First Circuit by appearing to recognize different rates for different weeks and then cherry-picking the weeks whose inclusion in the calculation of the regular rate would be most beneficial to Defendants. 9.1 (emphasis added).) Employees receive 1/52 of their annual salary each week, regardless of how many scheduled hours (i.e., thirty-two or forty) they work in a specific week. Despite references to this issue in the parties' supplemental submissions, any question concerning the Town's current adoption of the 207(k) law enforcement exception is not before the court. No. First, the Court of Appeals held that the grievance and arbitration procedures in the CBA did not bar the officers from filing their FLSA claims directly in federal court. Over the span of his career, Deputy Chief DeWolf has demonstrated his dedication to the department and to the university, says Parham. Officer Zach Hall was working a shift on New Year's Day when he responded to a call around 2:45 a.m. for a woman actively in labor, according to a Facebook post from the Agawam Police Department in Feeding Hills. Thus if an officer works for forty-one hours in a week in which he is only scheduled to work thirty-two hours, he is eligible for nine hours of contractual overtime, but only one hour of FLSA overtime. Name He was eventuallychased down and taken into custody, Clark said. APD Officer Jeffrey Hichborn, who has organized NNO activities for the past two years, said there was a lot of enthusiasm for this years event. [11] The explicit terms of the applicable agreement obviously cannot be rebutted by the police chief's affidavit, accepting of course its entire good faith, to the effect that the officers "know" they get a lunch break. O'Brien, 350 F.3d at 298 (noting that 29 C.F.R. Feeding Hills, MA. Police later determined that Pavone's license was suspected and he was placed under arrest. . Plaintiffs do not seek compensation for those weeks in which they were scheduled to work for thirty-two hours, because in those weeks the premium portion of the extra eight hours of contractual overtime would offset any potential FLSA overtime owed. . ), (Id. . Sign up to receive the Free Law Project newsletter with tips and announcements. in criminal justice with a minor in psychology from Westfield State University. 778.206 ("For example, if an employee is paid $5 an hour . Officers tried stopping the vehicle and followed the driver, later identified asAnthony Pavone, of Agawam, for more than two miles before it stopped on High Street.