Thread regarding Lowe's Cos. layoffs

I was never contacted by Lowes Corporation in regards to this lawsuit and I worked a lot of over time for 1/2 or less of my wage and who knows about all my spiffs. How do I go about getting money owed to me??

Now that I am safely employed elsewhere, I can report that as a Head Cashier, I was often provided no coverage for any 15 minute breaks and at least 3 times weekly expected to work past five hours before a meal break. We were scheduled this way on purpose. I spoke directly with my store manager about it, explaining that my peers and I felt at risk of reprimand if we punched the click according to our actual hours worked. I actually feel bad for every body involved at the store level, because they're trying to meet metrics and sales goals with inadequate manhours. The fault lies at the executive level, where they apparently have decided that it is profitable to misuse their workforce and pay penalties later if they are caught. They know it's hard for the little guy to prove any of what actually goes on. Technically, Lowes owes me at least several thousand dollars in hourly pay, nevermind penalties etc. I was trying to make sure I kept my job. It's so wrong.

I opted in to the Chinese overtime lawsuit 13-14 years ago while employed with the company and got about $600.00 once it was all settled. The original plaintiffs in the lawsuit got tens of thousands of dollars each while the attorneys likely got more that. That’s just how it works.

I got the letter on this most recent one last week and signed up for it as well. I can’t count the times that I took phone calls and texts as a delivery mgr while I was off to handle company business.

Former Lowe’s Loss Prevention Manager here. I was instructed by my boss to install WhatsApp on my phone when I worked there. The app went off at least twenty times a day as other LPM’s and LPS’s chimed in with information regarding possible shoplifting suspects. Needless to say the app constantly went off when it was my time away from the job and I was off duty. I was forced to view every piece of information that was shared on that app at all hours of the day whether I was working or not. The moment my eyes looked at that WhatsApp function on my phone while I was off duty I am entitled to overtime pay as I technically was working off the clock. If an attorney comes around to me I will tell this to them and let them possibly subpoena the WhatsApp phone records. All other people reading this should take my advice and go this route if you installed the WhatApp function on your phone for this job.

@124BwwK1-1xil
Did you receive the letter? It specifically says that if you were affected you need to provide as much evidence and/or recollection as possible as they may determine the amount of payout you receive. Doesn't sound like anyone who opts in gets paid the same amount at all.

I thought most ppl signed that "arbitration letter" meaning we can't take part of a class action? Am I right

yeah....exactly. so you just opting in in no way will determine who was affected more than anyone else. there will be people that opt to not join for major fear of retaliation! and then there will be people that opt in who never once took a phone call outside of work hours, who refused to ever go above and beyond even while on the clock etc. etc. and they will receive the exact same payout. furthermore this opting in c-ap will favor former employees more than active for this very fear of being targeted!

in a case involving WAGES the court should have an obligation that if and when its proven the employer engaged in provable patterns...they then should be compelled to take that list of, in this case hourly managers, and run each one through something to determine back pay....doesnt even have to be at 1.5 times. so as the example was given it was found that between these two dates one employee opened the store with no salaried individual 200 times and the court found that to open the store they spent on average 10 minutes off the clock then that employee is owed X amount based on time and hourly rate. and so on down the line. maybe the court finds the email thing didnt have merit...then they move on from that one even though some employees were compelled to do email reading off the clock. if all of this is truly too complicated then the slap on the wrist should be severe and it should automatically go to all those who could be affected based on the fact that they held the position. can easily weigh it based on amount of months in the position over the date ranges. this isnt a class action of feeling a product should have done more for you than you hoped....this is about lost wages.

as you flat out admitted the court nor lowes will ever know which employees were specifically harmed by certain things...but they darn well can prove a pattern....hence why you shouldnt have to opt in! you better believe a company as vindictive as lowes who has engaged in a continual pattern of hostility to its workforce will take that list of individuals who opted in and black ball them.

@124BwwK1-1zak
I disagree. Lowe's was compelled to have over a list of managers, but there's no way for these lawyers to know who was and who wasn't forced to with without pay, and Lowe's probably has no real idea either even if they know it went on.

I never worked off the clock for example. I'm not comfortable telling customers where more than one or two things are when I'm not working. I got a letter though. It wouldn't be fair to any of you for me to get a payout even though I'm unaffected.

its total BS that you have to opt in! how backwards is this country when you werent paid for your work which would be illegal....they have a record of who you are....and the court cant just make sure you get what is due to you. ooooh but they claim its illegal for your employer to target you for opting in! who the hell is going to protect you from lowes when they now have a list of active employees who arent going along with their game!

you should be protected from all of this. this is just another way the system isnt working for the little guy! not only should you receive backpay but there would be a pretty simply way in todays world to estimate exactly how much you receive. you had to open the store with no salaried individual with you x 200 times x 15 minutes a pop = dollars and so on. FORCE the multi-billion dollar company to come up with the numbers or force them to award every single hourly manager X amount. to send a clear message to all corporations that this c-ap will be stiffly penalized.

got so many nails in my tires because i was forced to drive around the store. even had an asm scold me one time because they drove the store and i waited on the other side. routinely am off the clock to start my day or end my day–sure it might be 10-15 minutes but it adds up quickly when it happens 5 times a week every week for years. yep we are so drowning in emails its ridiculous. youre forced to spend your lunch or any free moment reading them because youre forced into tasking for 99.9% of your shift. and some salaried manager is sure to b–ch you out because you arent reading their emails quick enough! and then theres the calls when youre at home because some matter is of urgent need to someone! ASMs will write you a list of things for you to do to start your shift...via email...with the expectation that you will have already read the email before you even start your shift.

we are treated as though we are petty to want that extra hour or two of pay that should be due to us every week....but you certainly dont see any salaried manager, district manager etc. etc. leaving a single penny on the table now do you.....

Im an hourly manager and called off the clock all the time.

I was an FSA for nearly two years. I too was instructed circle the store in my car before punching in every morning at 5AM. Checked the perimeter fences, gates and receiving areas. One early Sunday morning found two men parked in #3 truck bay. This resulted in me speeding away to locate mall security in their official security car They approached the guys with a car mounted spotlight and flashing yellow emergency lights. The parkers sped away with security in pursuit till they drove off of the mall property. How many times did all of us get nails, screws and glass in our tires? I did not mind a the time. I had Sears Road Hazard warranty on the tires. Now find a Sears? The warranty is expired. All four tires slowly leak. Lowe's may now be in following in Sears tire prints in the snow... Feel bad for my former coworkers. They have to live and work every day with the current operation.

Clearly Lowes local store management are the ones responsible for this practice. I had middle management return one day early from vacation to hide in an office behind a closed door to catch up on work before returning from vacation the following day. They were not punched in. Would not entertain any conversation and took over a needed computer for a good part of the day.

If they weren’t such petty and cheap douche bags about small stuff and appreciative of employees this would not be an issue.
You reap what you sow.

For 6 years I was an hourly Department manager. I was always scheduled to close with an ASM. Every day I was told to clock out by the ASM’s, then follow them around the building to check every door/gate. All on MY time!
An average of 30 minutes a day. Plus the phone calls on days off, etc. I would be owed between 130 to 170 hours of pay!

It was mentioned in a huddle at our store not to get involved in the lawsuit. The hint was you could be terminated.

In the past 2 years I’ve been a cabinet specialist. Still get the calls from store when I’m home & off the clock. They’re still doing the same use & abuse tactics.

How do you get info on this lawsuit. And is there s real chance of getting anything back?

When I was PSI Coordinator I was called constantly on my days off to answers questions regarding deliveries, products etc by Store Managers and Department Supervisors. The PSI was never able to answers their questions so they just started calling me. It would be nice to get compensated for the time I spent on the phone to answer their questions.

I signed up. Besides time spent driving the building, let’s not forget about all the tire punctures.

The irony of people b–ching about lawyers getting paid for their work regarding a lawsuit that exists because Lowe's failed to pay its employees for their work.

To those who say only the attorneys benefit from class action law suits, let’s be clear, attorneys benefit (financially) from 99.9% of all lawsuits. Unless it’s pro bono, attorneys don’t work for free, hence the reason it’s such a lucrative career.

For those who prefer to opt-out of the class action law suits I say do what’s best for you. The settlement amount one receives is based on the number of people who opt-in, less attorney’s fees. The fewer the people who opt in, the greater the settlement amount for those who did.

Don’t expect to get rich from any settlement. Something is better than the nothing Lowe’s paid you. If nothing else, corporate will receive the message loud and clear: You cannot take advantage of the employees! It’s the principle at this point.