By Monica Mercer
Chattanooga Times Free Press
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The company that runs Silverdale Detention Center in Hamilton County has settled a national class-action lawsuit that claimed it had a history of not paying employees for certain types of work.
The settlement amount that Corrections Corp. of America must pay is confidential, according to Kansas attorney Brendan Donelon, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of 17 original plaintiffs last year in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo.
The plaintiffs now include about 282 corrections officers from 14 states who work in 29 CCA facilities. All CCA employees, including those in Hamilton County, who think they might have been affected by policies that allegedly prevented them from receiving compensation have until July 27 to file claim forms.
Tommy Standifer, the superintendent at Silverdale, declined Tuesday to comment on the matter, specifically with regard to whether local employees are entitled to any back pay. He said the lawsuit was against CCA and has nothing to do with Hamilton County, which has a contract with CCA to run Silverdale.
According to court documents, CCA “has a policy of not paying corrections counselors, case managers and clerks for work performed in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.”
In particular, court documents state that CCA requires employees to be present at work before their shift starts but fails to compensate them for that time. Employees also are required to attend meetings off the clock, documents state.
Copyright 2009 Chattanooga Publishing Company