Attorney Peter Mavrick

Attorney Peter Mavrick recently successfully represented a Miami corporation that prevailed in an overtime wage case filed by a former employee. FLX transports freight in local, national, and international commerce. The case was venued in federal court in Miami, Florida.

One of the most important points of the federal court's decision was its interpretation of whether the former employee sufficiently "affected the safety and operation of motor vehicles," which is necessary for applying the FLSA exemption under the Motor Carrier Act.

Attorney Peter Mavrick argued that a truck dispatcher necessarily affects the safety and operation of vehicles because the sending of trucks on routes or the issues involved when a truck is distressed, fall on the shoulders of the dispatcher to resolve the safety related issues. The court agreed. The court's opinion explained that the former employee's job duties were analogous to cases applying the Motor Carrier Exemption to drivers, mechanics, loaders and helpers.

The court concluded that the plaintiff was engaged in safety-affecting activities in his position as truck dispatcher for FLX. In reaching its conclusion, the court 2 relied on Wirtz v. Robinson & Stephens, Inc., 1972 WL 852 *5 (N.D. Ga. 1972) (applying the Motor Carrier Act exemption and finding mechanics, wrecker and truck drivers, drivers' helpers, loaders, yardmen and dispatchers for the defendant employer were exempt from the overtime requirements of the FLSA).

Attorney Peter Mavrick practices in the field of business and labor/employment litigation in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Information contained in this article is accurate as of November 2008. This lens is for general information use only, and does not substitute for specifically tailored legal advice.