Second Circuit Revives Employee’s Claim That Supervisors Forced Him to Submit Fake Timesheets

The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has revived a lawsuit accusing Stanley Black & Decker of failing to pay for overtime employees worked but were told by supervisors not to request. The Court, reversing the holding of a district court judge in Rochester, held that the claim for unpaid wages for "off-the-clock" hours should go forward. According to the Court, the plaintiff should be allowed to pursue a claim that his supervisors wrongfully forced him to submit fake time sheets after ordering him not to record overtime. The Court held that employers cannot delegate the responsibility to maintain accurate records of employees' hours, and that an employer cannot be escape liability simply because the employee physically entered the erroneous hours into his time sheets. Kuebel et al v. Black & Decker Inc., United States, 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 10-2273.